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Isolation and Analysis of Aortic Arch and Root Lesions in an Atherosclerotic Mouse Model
Published on: February 14, 2025
Atherosclerotic aortic arch plaques in acute ischemic stroke
Randa Deif1, Mohamed El-Sayed, Foad Abd Allah
1Departments of Neurology, Cardiovascular medicine and Radiology, Cairo University, Egypt.
Journal of Vascular and Interventional Neurology
|April 21, 2012
Summary
Atherosclerotic aortic arch plaques are common in stroke patients and may cause embolisms. Multislice computerized tomography is better than trans-esophageal echocardiography for detecting these plaques.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Imaging
- Neurology
- Vascular Medicine
Background:
- Atherosclerotic aortic arch plaques (AAP) are associated with an increased risk of thrombo-embolic events.
- These events can lead to acute ischemic stroke of undetermined etiology.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the prevalence of atherosclerotic plaques in the aortic arch.
- To investigate their potential role as an embolic source in cerebral infarction of unknown cause.
Main Methods:
- Trans-esophageal echocardiography (TEE) and multislice computerized tomography (MSCT) of the aortic arch were performed on 30 patients with acute ischemic stroke of undetermined cause.
- Patients also underwent comprehensive clinical evaluation, laboratory tests, cranial CT, carotid duplex ultrasonography, and transcranial Doppler (TCD).
Main Results:
- Atherosclerotic aortic arch plaques were detected in 29.6% of patients by TEE and 40% by MSCT.
- AAP prevalence correlated significantly with older age, male gender, hypertension, ischemic heart disease, and carotid atherosclerotic lesions.
- MSCT demonstrated higher sensitivity than TEE in identifying plaque location, size, and characteristics.
Conclusions:
- Atherosclerotic aortic arch plaques are frequently found in patients with cryptogenic stroke, supporting their embolic potential.
- MSCT is superior to TEE for detecting and characterizing aortic arch plaques, particularly those relevant to stroke etiology.
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