Sample size calculation for clinical trials using magnetic resonance imaging for the quantitative assessment of carotid atherosclerosis.

Purpose: To provide sample size calculation for the quantitative assessment of carotid atherosclerotic plaque using non-invasive magnetic resonance imaging in multi-center clinical trials. METHODS. As part of a broader double-blind randomized trial of an experimental pharmaceutical agent, 20 asymptomatic placebo-control subjects were recruited from 5 clinical sites for a multi-center study.

Feasibility of in vivo, multicontrast-weighted MR imaging of carotid atherosclerosis for multicenter studies.

Purpose: To test the image quality (ImQ) and interscan coverage of MRI for measuring carotid atherosclerosis across multiple centers.

Materials And Methods: Thirty-nine subjects from five clinical sites (site 1: n=11; site 2: n=16; site 3: n=2; site 4: n=3; site 5: n=7) were imaged on GE 1.5T scanners using a standardized carotid imaging protocol with five weightings (T1, proton density (PD), T2, time-of-flight (TOF), and contrast-enhanced (CE) T1).

Carotid plaque composition differs between ethno-racial groups: an MRI pilot study comparing mainland Chinese and American Caucasian patients.

Objective: Ethnicity-based research may identify new clues to the pathogenesis of atherosclerotic disease. Therefore, we sought to determine whether carotid lesions differ between 20 Chinese and 20 Caucasian Americans by MRI.

Methods And Results: Inclusion criteria were >50% stenosis as measured by duplex ultrasound and recent symptoms attributed to carotid artery disease.

Differentiation of intraplaque versus juxtaluminal hemorrhage/thrombus in advanced human carotid atherosclerotic lesions by in vivo magnetic resonance imaging.

Background: Intraplaque hemorrhage and juxtaluminal hemorrhage/thrombus may differ in cause and clinical implications. This study tested the hypothesis that MRI can distinguish between intraplaque hemorrhage and juxtaluminal hemorrhage/thrombus and investigated the association between hemorrhage and underlying lesion types.

Methods And Results: Twenty-six patients scheduled for carotid endarterectomy were imaged with a 1.

Hemorrhage in the atherosclerotic carotid plaque: a high-resolution MRI study.

Background And Purpose: High-resolution, multicontrast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has developed into an effective tool for the identification of carotid atherosclerotic plaque components, such as necrotic core, fibrous matrix, and hemorrhage/thrombus. Factors that may lead to plaque instability are lipid content, thin fibrous cap, and intraplaque hemorrhage. Determining the age of intraplaque hemorrhage can give insight to the history and current condition of the biologically active plaque.