Study on distributions of low wall shear stress in common carotid arteries of patients with intima-media thickening / 中华超声影像学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To measure wall shear stress (WSS) in common carotid arteries of normal subjects and patients with intima-media thickening and analyze the spatial distribution of low wall shear stress by quantitative analysis of blood flow shear stress visualization software.Methods Color Doppler flow images of common carotid arteries in normal subjects (control group) and patients with intima-media thickening (study group) were extracted from DICOM files.Two-dimensional distribution images of WSS,three-dimensional distribution images of WSS and the value of WSS in the common carotid arteries were obtained by this new algorithm.Then,the data and images of WSS were analyzed.Results WSS in the common carotid arteries of the control group were ranged from 4 to14 dyn/cm2.WSS in the common carotid arteries of the study group were ranged from 2 to 6 dyn/cm2.Compared to mean WSS values [(6.91 ±1.20) dyn/cm2] in common carotid arteries of the control group,mean WSS values [(2.87 ± 0.59)dyn/cm2] in common carotid arteries of the study group was significantly lower (t =17.828,P =0.000).Conclusions Low WSS areas have been emerged in local common carotid arteries in the patients with intima-media thickening.The reduction of WSS caused by local hemodynamic change might be related to common carotid artery intima media thickening.