Carotid ultrasonography, including the assessment of plaque echomorphology, is a valuable non-invasive tool for stroke risk stratification and monitoring response to anti-atherosclerotic therapies.
Supports carotid ultrasonography for stroke risk stratification; leaves open prospective validation for therapy monitoring.
A carotid ultrasonography is a non-invasive technique that provides an accurate and reliable characterization of the broad spectrum of carotid arteriosclerosis, from the intima-media thickness to the atherosclerotic plaque. Carotid ultrasonography has become a useful tool for identifying patients at high risk of stroke and selecting those who can benefit most from revascularization therapies such as carotid endarterectomy and stenting. In addition to the degree of stenosis, plaque echomorphology has emerged in recent years as an important contributory factor to stroke risk. Changes in plaque echogenicity, as measured by the quantitative computer-assisted ultrasonography index, could be a marker of plaque instability as well as an indicator of plaque remodeling, thereby providing the means for monitoring anti-atherosclerosis drugs such as statins.
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Martínez‐Sánchez et al. (2013) studied this question.
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