Segment-Specific Susceptibility of Carotid Artery to Atherosclerotic Risk Factors: a Study by Ultrasound Integrated Backscatter Analysis in Patients With Intermediate Carotid Stenoses

Background: integrated backscatter analysis (IBS) of the reflected ultrasound signal represents a validated tool for tissue characterization of carotid plaque. However, little is known about the association between the acoustic properties of plaque-free carotid wall and plaque. Aim: to compare the IBS of the intima-media layer (IM) of common carotid artery (CCA), widely used as index of preclinical atherosclerosis, with that of the carotid plaques, and to evaluate their association with cardiovascular (risk factors in patients with multiple carotid plaques in different arterial segments. Methods: thirty-eight high-risk patients were studied (25 males, mean age 69±11, all dyslipidemic under statins, 81 treated hypertensives, 21 type 2 diabetics, 39 with clinical CAD, no current smokers) with 87 plaques (stenoses.....