Implications of the local haemodynamic forces on the phenotype of coronary plaques.

Aim: To examine the effect of endothelial shear stress (ESS) on the dynamic changes in plaque phenotype.

Methods: Patients with myocardial infarction that had intravascular ultrasound-virtual histology (IVUS-VH) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) at baseline and 13-month follow-up were studied. The IVUS-VH data were used to reconstruct the nonculprit vessels, and in the obtained models the ESS was estimated in 3 mm segments.