New Technologies in the Assessment of Carotid Stenosis: Beyond the Color-Doppler Ultrasound—High Frame Rate Vector-Flow and 3D Arterial Analysis Ultrasound
Emanuele David,
Ombretta Martinelli,
Patrizia Pacini,
Marco Di Serafino,
Pintong Huang,
Vincenzo Dolcetti,
Giovanni Del Gaudio,
Richard G. Barr,
Maurizio Renda,
Giuseppe T. Lucarelli,
Luca Di Marzo,
Dirk A. Clevert,
Carmen Solito,
Chiara Di Bella,
Vito Cantisani
Affiliations
Emanuele David
Department of Translational and Precision Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Ombretta Martinelli
Department of Surgery “Paride Stefanini”, Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Division, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale del Policlinico 155, 00161 Rome, Italy
Patrizia Pacini
Department of Radiological Sciences, Oncology and Pathology, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy
Marco Di Serafino
Department of General and Emergency Radiology, “Antonio Cardarelli” Hospital, 80131 Naples, Italy
Pintong Huang
Department of Ultrasound in Medicine, Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 242332, China
Vincenzo Dolcetti
Department of Radiological Sciences, Oncology and Pathology, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy
Giovanni Del Gaudio
Department of Radiological Sciences, Oncology and Pathology, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy
Richard G. Barr
Department of Radiology, Northeastern Ohio Medical University, Rootstown, OH 44272, USA
Maurizio Renda
Department of Radiological Sciences, Oncology and Pathology, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy
Giuseppe T. Lucarelli
Department of Radiological Sciences, Oncology and Pathology, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy
Luca Di Marzo
Department of Surgery “Paride Stefanini”, Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Division, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale del Policlinico 155, 00161 Rome, Italy
Dirk A. Clevert
Interdisciplinary Ultrasound-Center, Department of Radiology, University of Munich, Grosshadern Campus, 81377 Munich, Germany
Carmen Solito
Department of Radiological Sciences, Oncology and Pathology, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy
Chiara Di Bella
Department of Radiological Sciences, Oncology and Pathology, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy
Vito Cantisani
Department of Radiological Sciences, Oncology and Pathology, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy
Atherosclerotic plaque in the carotid artery is the main cause of ischemic stroke, with a high incidence rate among people over 65 years. A timely and precise diagnosis can help to prevent the ischemic event and decide patient management, such as follow up, medical, or surgical treatment. Presently, diagnostic imaging techniques available include color-Doppler ultrasound, as a first evaluation technique, computed tomography angiography, which, however, uses ionizing radiation, magnetic resonance angiography, still not in widespread use, and cerebral angiography, which is an invasively procedure reserved for therapeutically purposes. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound is carving out an important and emerging role which can significantly improve the diagnostic accuracy of an ultrasound. Modern ultrasound technologies, still not universally utilized, are opening new horizons in the arterial pathologies research field. In this paper, the technical development of various carotid artery stenosis diagnostic imaging modalities and their impact on clinical efficacy is thoroughly reviewed.
