Comparison of carotid plaque tissue characteristics in patients with acute coronary syndrome or stable angina pectoris: assessment by iPlaque, transcutaneous carotid ultrasonography with integrated backscatter analysis.

The association of the tissue characteristics of carotid plaques with coronary artery disease has attracted interest. The present study compared the tissue characteristics of carotid plaques in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) with those in patients with stable angina pectoris (SAP) using the iPlaque system, which is based on ultrasound integrated backscatter. Carotid ultrasound examinations were performed in 26 patients with ACS, and 38 age- and gender-matched patients with SAP. Neither plaque area nor maximal intima-media thickness differed significantly between the two groups. However, the average integrated backscatter value within the plaque was greater in the ACS patients than in the SAP patients. iPlaque analysis revealed that the percentage blue area (lipid pool) was greater in the ACS patients than in the SAP patients (43.4 ± 11.2 vs 18.3 ± 10.3 %, p < 0.0001), and that the percentage green area (fibrosis) was lower in the ACS than in the SAP patients (7.5 ± 7.5 % vs 20.7 ± 11.7 %, p < 0.0001). The lipid component of carotid plaques is greater in ACS patients than in SAP patients. Our iPlaque system provides a useful and feasible method for the tissue characterization of carotid plaques in the clinical setting.

颈动脉斑块的组织特征与冠状动脉疾病的关联已引起关注。本研究使用基于超声背向散射积分的iPlaque系统，比较了急性冠状动脉综合征（ACS）患者和稳定型心绞痛（SAP）患者颈动脉斑块的组织特征。 对26例ACS患者以及38例年龄和性别匹配的SAP患者进行了颈动脉超声检查。两组之间斑块面积和最大内膜 - 中膜厚度均无显著差异。然而，ACS患者斑块内的平均背向散射积分值大于SAP患者。iPlaque分析显示，ACS患者的蓝色区域（脂质池）百分比大于SAP患者（43.4 ± 11.2%对18.3 ± 10.3%，p < 0.0001），并且ACS患者的绿色区域（纤维化）百分比低于SAP患者（7.5 ± 7.5%对20.7 ± 11.7%，p < 0.0001）。 ACS患者颈动脉斑块的脂质成分多于SAP患者。我们的iPlaque系统为临床环境中颈动脉斑块的组织特征分析提供了一种有用且可行的方法。