Carotid Intima-Media Thickness for Atherosclerosis

The carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) is a widely used surrogate marker for atherosclerosis worldwide. The carotid IMT can be simply, noninvasively, and reproducibly measured through B-mode carotid ultrasound. The carotid IMT is also a strong predictor of future cerebral and cardiovascular events...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Atherosclerosis and Thrombosis 2016/01/06, Vol.23(1), pp.18-31
Main Authors: Nezu, Tomohisa, Hosomi, Naohisa, Aoki, Shiro, Matsumoto, Masayasu
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis - diagnosis
Atherosclerosis - diagnostic imaging
Atherosclerosis - metabolism
Biomarkers - metabolism
Cardiovascular Diseases - diagnosis
Cardiovascular Diseases - metabolism
Carotid Intima-Media Thickness
Clinical Trials as Topic
Humans
Intima-media thickness
Metabolic Diseases - metabolism
Review
Risk Factors
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Summary:The carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) is a widely used surrogate marker for atherosclerosis worldwide. The carotid IMT can be simply, noninvasively, and reproducibly measured through B-mode carotid ultrasound. The carotid IMT is also a strong predictor of future cerebral and cardiovascular events. In addition, regressions of increased carotid IMT by lipid-lowering and antihypertensive drugs have been reported. Despite the strong association between increased carotid IMT and cardiovascular disease, it remains unclear whether routine carotid IMT measurement is useful for the detection of subclinical atherosclerosis in clinical practice. Researches should consider other methodological aspects, such as the definition of carotid plaques, the choice of measurement sites on the common or internal carotid artery, and the assessment of maximum or minimum IMT. The detailed guidelines for measuring carotid IMT vary by county. Thus, the usefulness of the carotid IMT may be assessed in different countries taking racial differences into account. Other important parameters revealed by carotid ultrasound, such as artery stenosis and the characteristics and size of plaques, should also be considered. Physicians should comprehensively interpret the results of carotid ultrasonography. Therefore, carotid ultrasonography is an essential tool for assessing cardiovascular risk in clinical settings.
ISSN:1340-3478
1880-3873
DOI:10.5551/jat.31989