关键词: 颈动脉疾病; 动脉硬化; 血管新生; 超声检查; 造影剂

Abstract: Objective To observe composition of plaque and the features of neovascularization within human carotid atherosclerotic plaques with contrast-enhanced ultrasonography angiography.Methods Real-time contrast-enhanced ultrasonography(Contrast carotid duplex scanning) was performed in twenty patients with twenty-nine plaques of different degree of echogenicity. The features of plaques on contrast-enhanced ultrasonography were analyzed and compared with sizeand property of plaques.Results Twenty-eight plaques were enhanced on contrast-enhanced ultrasonography while nine plaques of them were enhanced from periphery of carotid wall to the center of the lesions withshort-line pattern and thirteen plaques were enhanced from periphery of carotid wall and carotidlumen to the center of the lesions with sparse spots pattern, and six plaques were enhanced fromcarotid lumen to the center of the lesions with sparse spots pattern. Nine plaques of enhancedatherosclerotic plaques were soft plaque. Fifteen plaques were mixed plaque. One of five hardplaques was unenhanced plaque.Conclusion The real-time contrast-enhanced ultrasonography is a more sensitive and noninvasiveway of demonstrating the hemodynamic of neovascularization within human carotid atheroscleroticplaques.

Key words: Carotid atherosclerosis; Plaque vascularization; Ultrasonography; Echo-contrast agents