Tortuosity and Proximal-specific Wall Shear Stress Associated with Plaque Location in Carotid Bulb: A High-resolution MRI and CFD Study

This study was performed from a vessel wall imaging database, and investigated plaque characteristics, as well as geometric and hemodynamic parameters among different carotid bulb plaque locations caused by atherosclerosis. The results showed that wall shear stress (WSS) magnitudes around plaque side were lower than non-plaque side. Tortuosity of stenosed region, magnitudes of relative residence time and transverse WSS in the proximal part of the lesion were the key factors independently associated with plaque location. This suggested that plaque formation was associated with local flow pattern; and tortuosity, proximal-specific hemodynamics were significantly associated with plaque location in the carotid bulb.