Magnetic Resonance Imaging for Stenotic Lesions of the Cervical Carotid Artery(<Special Issue>New Developments of Diagnosis and Treatments for Patients with Ischemic Stroke)

Abstract

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is widely used to assess atherosclerotic plaques in patients with carotid stenosis. However, the imaging techniques used in this field vary remarkably among institutions and vendors, and this may impair the accuracy of predicting intraplaque components. The image contrast of intraplaque components may deteriorate in cardinal techniques such as ECG-gated black-blood method. However, this issue may be resolved by using conventional spin-echo or MR angiography images, with appropriate scanning parameters. Further studies using standardized protocols are required in order to establish the clinical significance of MR stroke imaging and MR plaque imaging in the management of patients with cervical carotid stenosis.