THE APPEARANCE OF NORMAL AND ABNORMAL ARTERIAL MORPHOLOGY ON INTRAVASCULAR ULTRASOUND

The ultrasonic appearance of in vitro normal and atherosclerotic arter ial wall was investigated with an intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) prob e. Fresh cadaver specimens were used: two carotid, two aorta, four ili ac and eight superficial femoral arteries. The wall of muscular arteri es has a three-layered sonographic appearance. The central hypoechoic layer corresponds to the media, which is primarily composed of smooth muscle. Elastic arteries whose media have a high elastin content appea r uniformly echogenic. Calcified plaque is strongly echogenic with aco ustic shadowing, fibrous plaque is moderately echogenic, and where the re is no cellular matrix the plaque is poorly echogenic. IVUS can prov ide information about internal plaque architecture. Three-dimensional reconstructions can be generated using a transputer-based workstation coupled to the transducer, providing detailed views of surface contour .