Abstract
Introduction
Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) was recently used to evaluate vascularization within the carotid artery wall, and this process of vascularization was correlated with arteritis activity. We aimed to use CEUS to evaluate disease activity in Takayasu arteritis (TAK) patients.
Method
We used CEUS to analyze 28 consecutive TAK patients. Disease activity was assessed according to the NIH criteria. We measured CEUS grades and assessed the correlation between contrast features and disease activity.
Results
Higher erythrocyte sedimentation rates (ESRs) were found (35 ± 28.7 vs. 13 ± 7.4 mm/h, p < 0.01), and CEUS carotid wall enhancement was more frequently (100% vs. 36.6%, p < 0.01) seen in TAK patients in the active phase than in those in the inactive phase. With increasing CEUS grades, both the artery wall thickness and ESR increased, and patients were more likely to be in the active phase (0 in grade 0, 42.9% in grade 1, and 75% in grade 2). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that CEUS had an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.872 (95% CI 0.785–0.959, p < 0.01), demonstrating good diagnostic accuracy.
Conclusions
Higher CEUS grades reliably identify patients with active TAK.
Key Points • No CEUS vascularization is obviously relative with the inactive disease of TAK patients. • Obvious CEUS vascularization is obviously relative with the active disease of TAK patients. |
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by the National Nature Science Foundation of China (61571465), the Beijing Natural Science Foundation (7162159), and the CAMS Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences (CIFMS 2016-I2M-4-003).
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Dr. YW, Dr. Y-H, Dr. H-YW, and Dr. Z-TG performed the general ultrasound examination and collected the clinical data, and Dr. YW wrote the manuscript; Dr. JL and Dr. Y-JY evaluate the disease activity; Dr. X-PT and Dr. JL designed the whole experiments and supervised the whole project. Dr. X-FZ and Dr. SC reviewed the manuscript. All authors listed in the manuscript are the guarantors of this work and, as such, had full access to all the data used in the study and take responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.
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All procedures performed in the present study involving our participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
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Wang, Y., Wang, YH., Tian, XP. et al. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound for evaluating arteritis activity in Takayasu arteritis patients. Clin Rheumatol 39, 1229–1235 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-019-04698-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-019-04698-9