Abstract
After autopsy 12 human coronary arteries were investigated by intracoronary ultrasound in order to measure the vessel wall dimensions and to detect damage on the vessel wall architecture after balloon angioplasty. Histology revealed artherosclerosis in 11/12 arteries. A total of 41 representative coronary segments were selected for further off-line ultrasound and histological analysis. Intracoronary ultrasound and histological measurements of the vessel wall thickness after balloon dilatation demonstrated a good correlation between the maximum thickness of the intima (histology 0.62 mm vs. intracoronary ultrasound 0.65 mm, r = 0.87) and the intima-media complex (0.80 mm vs. 0.83 mm, r = 0.87), in contrast to a weak one between the minimum thickness (r = 0.46 and r = 0.37). A total of 21 cases of damage occurred during angioplasty; intracoronary ultrasound detected 17. Further analysis showed that it imaged 10 of 11 cases of damage involving more than 30° of the vessel circumference and 7 of 10 cases of damage involving less than 30° of the vessel circumference. After balloon angioplasty of diseased coronary arteries, intracoronary ultrasound is therefore reliable in measuring the maximum wall thickness and in imaging damage involving more than 30° of the vessel wall circumference.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Honye J, Mahon DJ, Jain A et al. Morphologic effects of coronary balloon angioplasty assessed by intravascular ultrasound imaging. Circulation 1992; 85: 1012–25.
Kearney P, Erbel R, Rupprecht HJ et al. Differences in the morphology of unstable and stable coronary lesions and their impact on the mechanisms of angioplasty. An in vivo study with intravascular ultrasound. Eur Heart J 1996; 17: 721–30.
Potkin BN, Keren G, Mintz GS et al. Arterial responses to balloon angioplasty: An intravascular ultrasound study. J Am Coll Cardiol 1992; 20: 942–51.
Ge J, Erbel R, Görge G et al. Intravascular ultrasound imaging of arterial wall architecture. Echocardiography 1992; 9: 475–83.
Gussenhoven EJ, Essed CE, Lancee CT et al. Arterial wall characteristics determined by intravascular ultrasound imaging: an in vitro study. J Am Coll Cardiol 1989; 14: 947–52.
Nishimura RA, Edwards WD, Warnes CA et al. Intravascular ultrasound imaging: In vitro validation and pathologic correlation. J Am Coll Cardiol 1990; 16: 145–54.
van der Lugt A, Gussenhoven EJ, Stijnen T et al. Comparison of intravascular ultrasonic findings after coronary balloon angioplasty evaluated in vitro with histology. Am J Cardiol 1995; 76: 661–6.
Krass S, Brennecke R, Voigtländer T, Stähr P et al. Assessment of image quality of intracoronary ultrasound systems with tissue-equivalent vessel phantoms. Comput Cardiol 1994; 289–92.
Fitzgerald PJ, Goar FG, Connolly AJ et al. Intravascular imaging of coronary arteries. Is three layers the norm? Circulation 1992; 86: 154–8.
Porter TR, Radio SJ, Anderson JA et al. Composition of coronary atherosclerotic plaque in the media affects intravascular ultrasound measurements of intimal thickness. J Am Coll Cardiol 1994; 23: 1079–84.
Waller BF. Pathology of transluminal balloon angioplasty used in the treatement of coronary heart disease. Hum Pathol 1987; 18: 476–84.
Tobis JM, Mallery JA, Gessert J et al. Intravascular ultrasound cross-sectional aterial imaging before and after balloon angioplasty in vitro. Circulation 1989; 80: 873–82.
Gussenhoven EJ, The SHK, Gerritsen P et al. Real-time intravascular ultrasonic imaging before and after balloon angioplasty. J Clin Ultrasound 1991; 19: 294–7.
Gussenhoven EJ, Lugt A, The SHK et al. Similarities and differences between coronary and iliofemoral arteries related to intravascular ultrasound. In: Roelandt J, (ed) Intravascular ultrasound. Dordrecht, Boston, London: Kluwer academic publisher, 1993, p. 45–62.
Pandian NG, Kreis A, Brockway B et al. Intravascular high frequency two dimensional ultrasound detection of arterial dissection and intimal flaps. Am Heart J 1990; 65: 1278–80.
Gerber T, Erbel R, Görge G et al. Classification of morphologic effects of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty assessed by intravascular ultrasound. Am J Cardiol 1992; 70:1546–54.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Voigtländer, T., Rupprecht, HJ., Britten, M. et al. In vitro examination of the coronary artery wall after balloon angioplasty using intracoronary ultrasound. Int J Cardiovasc Imaging 14, 65–70 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005846615032
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005846615032