Comparison of Carotid Atherosclerotic Plaque Characteristics by High-Resolution Black-Blood MR Imaging between Patients with First-Time and Recurrent Acute Ischemic Stroke

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Fig 1.
Comparison of carotid plaque burden in first-time and recurrent stroke after adjusting the age. The star indicates a significant difference (P < .05) between adjacent data.
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Fig 2.
The prevalence of MR imaging−defined carotid plaque compositions (ie, calcification, LRNC, and IPH and/or fibrous cap rupture) in patients with first-time stroke compared with those with recurrent stroke. A high prevalence of calcification, LRNC, and IPH and/or fibrous cap rupture was found in the patients with recurrent stroke.
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Fig 3.
An atherosclerotic plaque with a large LRNC was found in the right internal carotid artery of a 65-year-old male patient who had ipsilateral first-time acute ischemic stroke. The plaque exhibits an intact surface and typical signal-intensity patterns of LRNC (arrows) on TOF, T1-weighted, and T2-weighted images. No high signal intensity was present on the MPRAGE image representing IPH.
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Fig 4.
A large complicated plaque can be seen in the left common carotid artery of a 77-year-old male patient who experienced ipsilateral recurrent acute ischemic stroke. Inhomogeneous signal intensity (arrows) on TOF, T1-weighted, and T2-weighted images indicates LRNC with IPH and fibrous cap rupture. The hemorrhage was depicted more clearly by MPRAGE images.

Table 1:

Patients demographic and clinical information^a

	First-Time Stroke (n = 51)	Recurrent Stroke (n = 38)	P Value
Age (yr)	59.98 ± 10.55	67.05 ± 9.69	.002^b
Sex, male	72.5%	78.9%	.489
Body mass index	24.06 ± 2.76	23.69 ± 2.93	.543
Total cholesterol (mmol/L)	4.50 ± 1.05	4.96 ± 0.91	.031^b
High-density lipoprotein (mmol/L)	1.08 ± 0.27	1.14 ± 0.24	.346
Low-density lipoprotein (mmol/L)	2.74 ± 0.94	2.95 ± 0.69	.223
Hypertension	70.6%	86.8%	.069
Diabetes	37.3%	39.5%	.831
Smoking	58.8%	50.0%	.408
Coronary heart disease	17.6%	22.5%	.732

Table 2:

Comparison of carotid plaque burden after adjusting the age

Carotid Plaque Burden	First-Time Stroke (n = 51)	Recurrent Stroke (n = 38)	P Value
Mean LA (mm²)	49.06 ± 14.06	45.46 ± 17.98	.292
Mean WA (mm²)	26.16 ± 5.58	29.82 ± 9.78	.043^a
Mean TVA (mm²)	75.22 ± 16.09	75.28 ± 20.62	.988
Mean WT (mm²)	0.96 ± 0.22	1.13 ± 0.42	.043^a
PWV (%)	35.49 ± 7.36	40.66 ± 11.86	.021^a