Basic ultrasonic characteristics of atherosclerosis measured by intravascular ultrasound and acoustic microscopy

摘要

Basic ultrasonic properties of atherosclerotic specimens excised by directional coronary atherectomy (DCA) were measured by in vivo intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) tissue velocity imaging and in vitro acoustic microscopy. Two-dimensional tissue velocity and strain were calculated by the template-matching method of two consecutive IVUS frames. A specially developed acoustic microscope system with 200 MHz frequencies showed the basic ultrasonic parameters of tissue components in atherosclerosis and the presence of macrophages. The integration of both methodologies helped to understand ultrasonic tissue characterization of vulnerable plaque in coronary arteries and the pathophysiology of atherosclerosis.