Qiao Huiyu, Cai Ying, Huang Manwei, Liu Yang, Zhang Qiang, Huang Lingyun, Chen Huijun, Yuan Chun, Zhao Xihai
Center for Biomedical Imaging Research, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tsinghua University School of Medicine, Beijing 100084, China.
Department of Radiology, Taizhou People's Hospital, Taizhou 225400, China.
Quant Imaging Med Surg. 2020 May;10(5):1021-1032. doi: 10.21037/qims-19-818.
It has been proven that magnetic resonance (MR) and ultrasound imaging are useful tools in the quantification of carotid atherosclerotic plaques. However, there are only a few pieces of evidence to illustrate the links of quantitative measurements of carotid plaques between MR and ultrasound imaging. This study looked to compare the quantitative measurements of carotid plaques and investigate their relationship between three-dimensional (3D) MR vessel wall imaging and two-dimensional (2D) ultrasound imaging.
Seventy-five asymptomatic elderly subjects (mean age: 73.3±5.7 years; 45 males) with carotid atherosclerotic plaques diagnosed by both ultrasound and MR imaging were included in this study. The plaque size, including the maximum wall thickness (Max WT), plaque length, and plaque area, was measured by 3D MR and ultrasound imaging on longitudinal and cross-sectional views. The quantitative assessments of carotid plaque size were compared and correlated between 3D MR and 2D ultrasound imaging.
In total, the quantitative measurements of 101 plaques on longitudinal views or 44 plaques on cross-sectional views of both MR and ultrasound imaging were compared. The Max WT of the plaques (longitudinal: 2.9±0.8 2.4±0.9 mm; cross-sectional: 3.2±1.1 2.6±0.7 mm) and plaque areas (longitudinal: 24.3±13.4 17.0±12.7 mm; cross-sectional: 24.9±24.6 16.8±13.3 mm) measured by MR imaging were found to be significantly higher than those measured by ultrasound imaging (all P<0.001). Moderate to strong correlations were found in Max WT, plaque area, plaque length between 3D MR and ultrasound imaging.
The quantitative measurements of carotid plaques using 3D MR and 2D ultrasound are significantly correlated. The plaque area and Max WT measured by 3D MR imaging are more significant than these parameters measured by 2D ultrasound imaging, which might be explained by the resolution of MR imaging and the workflow of measurements.
已证实磁共振（MR）和超声成像在量化颈动脉粥样硬化斑块方面是有用的工具。然而，仅有少量证据说明MR与超声成像在颈动脉斑块定量测量方面的联系。本研究旨在比较颈动脉斑块的定量测量，并研究三维（3D）MR血管壁成像与二维（2D）超声成像之间的关系。
本研究纳入了75名经超声和MR成像诊断为颈动脉粥样硬化斑块的无症状老年受试者（平均年龄：73.3±5.7岁；45名男性）。通过3D MR和超声成像在纵向和横断面上测量斑块大小，包括最大壁厚度（Max WT）、斑块长度和斑块面积。比较并关联3D MR和2D超声成像对颈动脉斑块大小的定量评估。
总共比较了MR和超声成像纵向视图上101个斑块或横断面上44个斑块的定量测量。发现MR成像测量的斑块Max WT（纵向：2.9±0.8对2.4±0.9 mm；横断面上：3.2±1.1对2.6±0.7 mm）和斑块面积（纵向：24.3±13.4对17.0±12.7 mm；横断面上：24.9±24.6对16.8±13.3 mm）显著高于超声成像测量的结果（所有P<0.001）。在3D MR和超声成像之间，Max WT、斑块面积、斑块长度存在中度至强相关性。
使用3D MR和2D超声对颈动脉斑块进行定量测量具有显著相关性。3D MR成像测量的斑块面积和Max WT比2D超声成像测量的这些参数更显著，这可能由MR成像的分辨率和测量流程来解释。
