Blood-flow volume quantification in internal carotid and vertebral arteries: comparison of 3 different ultrasound
S O Oktar1, C Yücel, D Karaosmanoglu
1Department of Radiology, School of Medicine, Gazi University, Besevler, Ankara, Turkey.
Insights
B-flow imaging (BFI) offers the most accurate ultrasound estimation of cerebral blood-flow volume (BFV), correlating best with MR phase-contrast quantification. This makes BFI a cost-effective alternative for evaluating cerebrovascular disorders.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Vascular Ultrasound
- Cerebrovascular Physiology
Background:
- Cerebral blood-flow volume (BFV) estimation is crucial for assessing cerebrovascular disorders.
- Current ultrasound techniques for BFV measurement vary in accuracy.
- Magnetic resonance (MR) phase-contrast imaging is a reliable but costly method for BFV quantification.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare BFV measurements from color Doppler, power Doppler, and B-flow imaging (BFI) against MR phase-contrast quantification.
- To determine which ultrasound technique most accurately estimates cerebral BFV in healthy volunteers.
Main Methods:
- BFV was measured in the internal carotid and vertebral arteries of 40 healthy volunteers using color Doppler, power Doppler, BFI, and MR phase-contrast imaging.
- Sonographic BFV measurements were compared with MR phase-contrast data.
Main Results:
- All four techniques showed statistically significant differences in BFV measurements (P < .05).
- BFI yielded values closest to MR phase-contrast quantification for both internal carotid (238.84 mL/min) and vertebral arteries (51.16 mL/min).
- BFI demonstrated higher correlation rates with MR phase-contrast imaging compared to color and power Doppler.
Conclusions:
- B-flow imaging shows the highest correlation with MR phase-contrast imaging among the evaluated sonographic techniques.
- B-flow sonography presents a cost-effective and effective alternative for cerebral BFV calculation, aiding in the evaluation of cerebrovascular conditions.
Background And Purpose:
Optimal estimation of cerebral blood-flow volume (BFV) may be an important indicator for better evaluation of the patients with cerebrovascular disorders. In this study, we compared the BFV values at bilateral internal carotid and vertebral arteries of healthy volunteers obtained with color Doppler, power Doppler, and B-flow ultrasound (US) studies and tried to determine which examination is more correlated with MR phase-contrast quantification.
Methods:
BFVs of the internal carotid and vertebral arteries of 40 healthy volunteers (19 men and 21 women; age range, 20-47 years) were measured by using color Doppler, power Doppler, B-flow US and MR phase-contrast imaging. The flow measurements obtained with the sonographic techniques were compared with MR phase contrast, which is accepted as the most reliable method for the estimation of cerebral BFV.
Results:
Quantification with power Doppler imaging showed the highest values among sonography techniques, followed by color Doppler imaging, B-flow imaging (BFI), and MR phase-contrast flow quantification. There was a statistically significant difference between the flow-volume values obtained with these 4 different techniques (P < .05). BFI yielded the closest values (internal carotid arteries, 238.84 mL/min; vertebral arteries, 51.16 mL/min) to MR phase-contrast flow quantification study with higher correlation rates.
Conclusion:
Flow volumes obtained with BFI showed the highest correlation with MR phase-contrast imaging among 3 different sonography techniques. B-flow sonography may be a very effective and cost-efficient alternative for MR phase-contrast studies for the calculation of cerebral BFV.
