title: Plaques of Nonstenotic Basilar Arteries with Isolated Pontine Infarction on Three-dimensional High Isotropic Resolution Magnetic Resonance Imaging.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There are few studies for evaluating plaque characteristics of nonstenotic basilar arteries (BA). Our aim was to determine entire BA plaques with a three-dimensional volumetric isotropic turbo spin-echo acquisition (VISTA) and investigate the differences between the patients with and without isolated pontine infarction (IPI).
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-four consecutive symptomatic patients with nonstenotic BA on time of flight magnetic resonance angiography (TOF MRA) were enrolled from China-Japan Friendship Hospital between January 2014 and December 2014. BA was classified as "normal" or "irregular" based on TOF MRA, and "normal wall", "slight wall-thickening", and "plaque" based on three-dimensional VISTA images. Outcomes from MRA and VISTA were compared. Patients were categorized as IPI and non-IPI groups based on the diffusion-weighted imaging. Clinical and plaque characteristics were compared between the two groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 1024 image slices including 311 (30.37%) plaque slices, 427 (41.70%) slight wall-thickening slices, and 286 (27.93%) normal wall slices for the entire BA from 23 patients were finally included for analysis. VISTA images detected plaques in all the 9 (100%) irregular MRA patients and 7 of 14 (50%) normal MRA patients. IPI was found in 11 (47.83%) patients. Compared to non-IPI group, the IPI group had a higher percentage of plaque slices (P = 0.001) and lower percentage of normal wall slices (P = 0.014) than non-IPI group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Three-dimensional VISTA images enable detection of BA plaques not visualized by MRA. BA plaques could be found in both the IPI and non-IPI group. However, IPI group showed plaques more extensively in BA than the non-IPI group.
authors.forename: Xian-Jin
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Wei-Jian
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Li-Bin
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Wu
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing 100029, China.
authors.forename: Zun-Jing
authors.initials: ZJ
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001488:Basilar Artery / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018810:Magnetic Resonance Angiography; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D058226:Plaque, Atherosclerotic / Q000473:pathology; D011149:Pons / Q000473:pathology*