Intraluminal ultrasound assessment of vascular stent deployment

This study assessed the utility of intraluminal ultrasound imaging during deployment of a self-expanding vascular stent and quantitated changes in arterial morphology produced by the stent. Cross-sectional images of arterial lumens (n = 50) were obtained before stenting, in-vitro (n = 35) from formalin-preserved human superficial femoral arteries and in-vivo (n = 15) from canine iliac arteries containing laser-induced eccentric stenoses. Comparison of ultrasound-derived vessel dimensions (minimum and maximum diameter and cross-sectional area) with histological morphometric analysis of corresponding vessel sites showed good correlation by linear regression analysis (r = 0.930-0.987, p = 0.001-0.005). Following stent placement, 23 intraluminal ultrasound images were obtained from the stented vessel sites (in-vitro n = 15, in-vivo n = 8) and were compared to prestented cross-sectional areas. In the in-vitro vessels there was a small increase (p = 0.023) in area, but there was no change in the in-vivo arteries (p = 0.6). To assess the effect of stenting on luminal shape (ellipticity), minimum/maximum diameter ratios were compared before and after stent deployment. There was an increase in this ratio in the in-vitro vessels (p = 0.001) but no change in the in-vivo arteries (p = 0.2). We conclude that intraluminal ultrasound produces clear and accurate images of the location, shape and degree of arterial pathology, ensuring good stent: vessel size matching and immediate quantitative assessment of the effects of arterial stent placement.