Vulnerable Atherosclerotic Plaque

Vulnerable Atherosclerotic Plaque

Plaque Progression: Often Abrupt, Rarely Predictable Some facts are now certain. First, plaque progression and clinical outcome are not always closely related, and each is poorly predicted by clinical and angiographic variables.1–4 Second, many plaques progress episodically because of episodes of thrombosis triggered by rupture, erosion (denudation), or occasionally endothelial activation or in...

Vulnerable atherosclerotic plaque: a multifocal disease.

Plaque Progression: Often Abrupt, Rarely Predictable Some facts are now certain. First, plaque progression and clinical outcome are not always closely related, and each is poorly predicted by clinical and angiographic variables.1–4 Second, many plaques progress episodically because of episodes of thrombosis triggered by rupture, erosion (denudation), or occasionally endothelial activation or in...

Imaging of the Vulnerable Atherosclerotic Plaque

Coronary Atherosclerotic Vulnerable Plaque: Current Perspectives

A therosclerosis is the most common form of vascular disease and constitutes the major cause of death, with 17.5 million related deaths annually (31% of global mortality). Atherosclerotic plaque represents the hallmark lesion of atherosclerosis. Most, but not all, acute cardiac events occur in the context of plaque-related thrombus formation, with the remainder associated with primary cardiomyo...

Ultrasound Tissue Characterization of Vulnerable Atherosclerotic Plaque

A thrombotic occlusion of the vessel fed by ruptured coronary atherosclerotic plaque may result in unstable angina, myocardial infarction or death, whereas embolization from a plaque in carotid arteries may result in transient ischemic attack or stroke. The atherosclerotic plaque prone to such clinical events is termed high-risk or vulnerable plaque, and its identification in humans before it b...