Investigation of Multiple Ultrasound Techniques for the Assessment of Carotid Plaque Vulnerability
Investigation of Multiple Ultrasound Techniques for the Assessment of Carotid Plaque Vulnerability
Stroke is a common clinical disease with high disability and mortality, which seriously
 threatens human life and health.Carotid atherosclerotic plaque rupture is an important
 pathogenic basis of ischemic stroke, so judging the stability of plaque has important
 clinical significance in preventing ischemic stroke.Ultrasound, as a convenient, rapid,
 noninvasive, radiation-free auxiliary examination technology, is widely used in carotid
 plaque stability examination.At present, there are many methods to judge the stability of
 carotid plaque based on ultrasound, including two-dimensional ultrasound, contrast-enhanced
 ultrasound, ultrasound elastography and so on. However, the results of plaque stability
 judgment by various technologies deviate greatly, which is not conducive to the development
 of standardized diagnosis and treatment strategies by clinicians.Studies have shown that
 because the neovascular epidermal cells in atherosclerotic plaques are imperfect, they are
 easy to rupture after stress, and the ruptured neovasculature will lead to intraplaque
 hemorrhage, thus causing plaque shedding, and eventually obstructing the cerebrovascular
 cause stroke.Contrast-enhanced ultrasound can sensitively detect the distribution and course
 of blood vessels.The plaque's softness and hardness determine its stability, while the
 difference of lipids, fibers and calcium in the plaque determines its softness and
 hardness.Real-time ultrasound elastography can provide tissue mechanical parameters, express
 the soft and hard of tissue with strain value, and provide important reference information
 for judging plaque stability.At present, elastography technology is used to reflect the
 hardness of plaque, so as to further judge its stability.However, the elastography parameters
 are prone to deviations due to the influence of the selected section and the selected region
 of interest.It can be seen from the above that there is currently a multi-modality method to
 evaluate the stability of carotid plaque using ultrasound, but there is a lack of a unified
 and objective reference standard for plaque stability assessment.The purpose of this study is
 to explore the comprehensive utilization of these modalities under the premise of optimizing
 each ultrasound modality to provide a unified and objective criterion for judging the
 stability of carotid plaque.
Inclusion Criteria:

 -  At least one examination suggested the presence of carotid plaque

 -  Suitable for CEUS examination

 -  Voluntary enrollment in this study and signing of informed consent

 Exclusion Criteria:

 -  Among ischemic brain rates caused by non-carotid plaque shedding

 -  Follow-up Lost

 -  Pregnant women