Coronary high intensity plaques (CHIPs) detected using cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) coronary atherosclerosis T1-weighted characterization with integrated anatomical reference (CATCH) have been shown to be positively associated with high-risk morphology observed on intracoronary optical coherence tomography (OCT). This study sought to validate whether CHIPs detected on CATCH indicate the presence of intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH) through ex vivo imaging of carotid and coronary plaque specimens, with histopathology as the standard reference. Ten patients scheduled to undergo carotid endarterectomy underwent CMR with the conventional T1-weighted (T1w) sequence. Eleven carotid atherosclerotic plaques removed at carotid endarterectomy and six coronary artery endarterectomy specimens removed from patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) were scanned ex vivo using both the conventional T1w sequence and CATCH. Both in vivo and ex vivo images were examined for the presence of IPH. The sensitivity, specificity, and Cohen Kappa (k) value of each scan were calculated using matched histological sections as the reference. k value between each scan in the discrimination of IPH was also computed. A total of 236 in vivo locations, 328 ex vivo and matching histology locations were included for the analysis. Sensitivity, specificity, and k value were 76.7%, 95.3%, and 0.75 for in vivo T1w imaging, 77.2%, 97.4%, and 0.78 for ex vivo T1w imaging, and 95.0%, 92.1%, and 0.84 for ex vivo CATCH, respectively. Moderate agreement was reached between in vivo T1w imaging, ex vivo T1w imaging, and ex vivo CATCH for the detection of IPH: between in vivo T1w imaging and ex vivo CATCH (k = 0.68), between ex vivo T1w imaging and ex vivo CATCH (k = 0.74), between in vivo T1w imaging and ex vivo T1w imaging (k = 0.83). None of the coronary artery plaque locations showed IPH. This study demonstrated that carotid CHIPs detected by CATCH can be used to assess for IPH, a high-risk plaque feature.

A three-dimensional (3D) cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) vessel wall imaging (VWI) technique based on 3D T1 weighted (T1w) Sampling Perfection with Application-optimized Contrast using different flip angle Evolutions (SPACE) has recently been used as a promising CMR imaging modality for evaluating extra-cranial and intra-cranial vessel walls. However, this technique is yet to be validated against the current diagnostic imaging standard. We therefore aimed to evaluate the diagnostic performance of 3D CMR VWI in characterizing carotid disease using intra-arterial digital subtraction angiography (DSA) as a reference. Consecutive patients with at least unilateral > 50% carotid stenosis on ultrasound were scheduled to undergo interventional therapy were invited to participate. The following metrics were measured using 3D CMR VWI and DSA: lumen diameter of the common carotid artery (CCA) and segments C1–C7, stenosis diameter, reference diameter, lesion length, stenosis degree, and ulceration. We assessed the diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of 3D CMR VWI, and used Cohen’s kappa, the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), and Bland-Altman analyses to assess the diagnostic agreement between 3D CMR VWI and DSA. The ICC (all ICCs ≥0.96) and Bland-Altman plots indicated excellent inter-reader agreement in all individual morphologic measurements by 3D CMR VWI. Excellent agreement in all individual morphologic measurements were also found between 3D CMR VWI and DSA. In addition, 3D CMR VWI had high sensitivity (98.4, 97.4, 80.0, 100.0%), specificity (100.0, 94.5, 99.1, 98.0%), and Cohen’s kappa (0.99, 0.89, 0.84, 0.96) for detecting stenosis > 50%, stenosis > 70%, ulceration, and total occlusion, respectively, using DSA as the standard. The AUC of 3D CMR VWI for predicting stenosis > 50 and > 70% were 0.998 and 0.999, respectively. The 3D CMR VWI technique enables accurate diagnosis and luminal feature assessment of carotid artery atherosclerosis, suggesting that this imaging modality may be useful for routine imaging workups and provide comprehensive information for both the vessel wall and lumen.

SUMMARY Homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia is a rarely agentic disorder of the lipoprotein metabolism intimately related to premature atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease that can lead to high disability and mortality. Homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia typically affects not only the aortic root, compromising the coronary ostia, but also affects other territories such as the carotid, descending aorta, and renal arteries. Multi-contrast high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provides a validated and useful method to characterize carotid artery atherosclerotic plaques quantitatively. However, very few studies have been done on assessing plaque composition in patients with Homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia using high-resolution MRI. This report is to evaluate the value of MRI in accessing carotid artery disease in patients with Homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia. We describe a 28-year-old patient from Beijing, China, who presented to the Neurology Clinic with intermittent blurred vision of the right eye, headache, nausea, and vomiting for eight years without obvious causes. Familial hypercholesterolemia was suspected based on medical history and laboratory examination. Carotid Doppler ultrasound showed bilateral common carotid artery, internal carotid artery, and external carotid artery wall thickening with hyperechoic signals. Subsequently, high-resolution multi-contrast MRI of the carotid showed calcification with hypo-intense areas located at the middle layer of the plaque, with moderate stenosis. The plaque located at the right bifurcation of the common carotid artery extended to the internal carotid artery, causing lumen stenosis close to occlusion. The patient was treated with right carotid artery endarterectomy. At a 6-month follow-up, there had been no recurrence of the patient’s symptoms.

Coronary hyper-intense plaque (CHIP) detected on T1-weighted cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) has been shown to associate with vulnerable plaque features and worse outcomes in low- and intermediate-risk populations. However, the prevalence of CHIP and its clinical significance in the higher-risk acute coronary syndrome (ACS) population have not been systematically studied. This study aims to assess the relationship between CHIP and ACS clinical severity using intracoronary optical coherence tomography (OCT) as the reference. A total of 62 patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease were prospectively enrolled including a clinically diagnosed ACS group (n = 50) and a control group with stable angina pectoris (n = 12). The ACS group consisted of consecutive patients including unstable angina pectoris (n = 27), non-ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction (non-STEMI) (n = 8), and ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) (n = 15), respectively. All patients underwent non-contrast coronary CMR to determine the plaque-to-myocardium signal intensity ratio (PMR). Among the four groups of patients, a progressive increase in the prevalence of CHIPs (stable angina, 8%; unstable angina, 26%; non-STEMI, 38%; STEMI, 67%; p = 0.009), and PMR values (stable angina, 1.1; unstable angina, 1.2; non-STEMI, 1.3; STEMI, 1.6; median values, P = 0.004) were observed. Thrombus (7/8, 88% vs. 4/22, 18%, p = 0.001) and plaque rupture (5/8, 63% vs. 2/22, 9%, p = 0.007) were significantly more prevalent in CHIPs than in plaques without hyper-intensity. Elevated PMR was associated with high-risk plaque features including plaque rupture, thrombus, and intimal vasculature. A positive correlation was observed between PMR and the number of high-risk plaque features identified by OCT (r = 0.44, p = 0.015). The prevalence of CHIPs and PMR are positively associated with the disease severity and high-risk plaque morphology in ACS.

(1) Aim: We aim to evaluate the association between arousals during sleep and subclinical coronary atherosclerosis detected by coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). (2) Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. Consecutive newly diagnosed OSA patients, who underwent coronary CTA examinations within 3 months of the sleep study, were eligible. We used the arousal index (ArI) derived from polysomnography to assess arousals during sleep and a semi-automated plaque quantification software to characterize and quantify the subclinical coronary atherosclerosis. Multiple regression models were used to evaluate the associations of the ArI with the coronary atherosclerotic plaque presence, volume, and composition. (3) Results: A total of 99 patients with OSA were included in the study. In the multivariable models, patients with a high ArI (ArI > 32.2 events/h) were more likely to have coronary plaques compared to those with a low ArI (ArI ≤ 32.2 events/h) (OR: 3.29 [95% CI: 1.284 to 8.427], p = 0.013). Furthermore, the ArI exhibited significant associations with total (β = 0.015), noncalcified (β = 0.015), and low-attenuation (β = 0.012) coronary plaque volume after accounting for established risk factors (p = 0.008, 0.004, and 0.002, respectively). However, no association between the ArI and calcified plaque volume was found. (4) Conclusion: Repetitive arousals during sleep are associated with an increased coronary plaque burden in patients with OSA, which remained robust after adjusting for multiple established cardiovascular risk factors.