关键词: 脑梗死; 颈动脉斑块; 应变成像; 超声; 运动

Abstract:

Objective To investigate the value of X-strain imaging (XS) in evaluating carotid plaque motility in patients with cerebral infarction. Methods 26 cerebral infarction patients with carotid atherosclerotic plaques identified by carotid ultrasound from March 2015 to February 2016 were enrolled in cerebral infarction group, and 24 non-stroke patients with carotid atherosclerotic plaques as the control group. Both groups were all examined by X-strain imaging and carotid ultrasound. The strain and movement characteristics of carotid plaques in different positions were compared between the two groups. Results There was no significant difference in carotid plaque size between the two groups by conventional ultrasound. XS results showed that the strain and movement of the plaques between the two groups had significant difference. The movement of plaque in proximal shoulder was more obvious than that in distal shoulder in cerebral infarction group, the transverse movement speed [(0.25±0.07) cm/s vs (0.15±0.05) cm/s] and displacement [(0.28±0.10) mm vs (0.17±0.05) mm] in proximal and distal subgroups also had significant difference. The strain in the top [(2.75±1.01)%] was lower than that in proximal shoulder [(4.43±1.08)%] and distal shoulder [(4.23±1.24)%], the difference was statistically significant. Conclusions The strain and movement of carotid plaques in patients with cerebral infarction are more obvious, and the plaques vulnerability is high.

Key words: Cerebral infarction; Carotid plaque; X-strain imaging; Ultrasound; Movement