Clinical Perspective of Carotid Plaque Imaging.

At present, patients with carotid disease are selected for invasive recanalization therapies mainly based on the degree of luminal narrowing and the presence or absence of recent ischemic symptoms. A more sophisticated risk model takes into account other clinical variables, such as age, sex, and the type of recent symptoms, as well as presence of ulcerated plaque. A growing body of evidence shows that noninvasive imaging of the carotid plaque by various methods reliably identifies structural correlates of plaque vulnerability, which are associated with an increased risk of cerebrovascular events.