The vulnerable, or high-risk, atherosclerotic plaque: noninvasive MR imaging for characterization and assessment

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Imaging
• Atherosclerosis Research
• Medical Diagnostics

Background:

• Vulnerable plaques are key drivers of thrombotic cardiovascular events like heart attack and stroke.
• Plaque composition and morphology significantly influence event risk, beyond just luminal stenosis.
• Noninvasive assessment of plaque vulnerability is crucial for predicting and preventing cardiovascular events.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the current capabilities of magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in depicting criteria for vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques.
• To summarize the status of MR imaging techniques for assessing plaque vulnerability.
• To present MR imaging applications in both animal models and human vascular diseases, focusing on carotid arteries.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing MR imaging techniques for plaque characterization.
• Analysis of MR imaging's ability to visualize vulnerable plaque features (e.g., composition, morphology).
• Inclusion of studies using MR imaging in animal models and human subjects with atherosclerotic disease.

Main Results:

• MR imaging demonstrates potential for noninvasively characterizing atherosclerotic plaque composition and morphology.
• Existing MR techniques can depict several criteria associated with vulnerable plaques.
• Studies in various vascular beds, especially carotid arteries, highlight MR imaging's utility.

Conclusions:

• MR imaging is a valuable tool for assessing vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques and their potential for causing cardiovascular events.
• Further development and application of MR imaging can improve the noninvasive evaluation of plaque vulnerability.
• MR imaging facilitates a deeper understanding of plaque biology and risk stratification.