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Edward Bluth, MD
Department of Diagnostic Radiology

Richard L. Hughes, MD
Department of Neurology Ochsner Clinic and Alton Ochsner Medical Foundation 1514 Jefferson Hwy New Orleans, LA 70121

Arch Neurol. 1988;45(6):602.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

To the Editor.

—In their review, Fisher and coworkers¹ make it clear that intrinsic plaque characteristics are an important, and, until recently, neglected, area of research in carotid artery disease. We would like to add that it is now possible, using high-resolution ultrasonography, to characterize the intrinsic nature of a carotid artery plaque as either homogeneous (without hemorrhage) or heterogeneous (with intrinsic intraplaque hemorrhage) with a high degree of accuracy.² In a recently published study, we were able to identify the presence or absence of intraplaque hemorrhage with an accuracy of 90%, sensitivity of 94%, and specificity of 88%. The benefit of using ultrasound is that carotid plaques can be accurately characterized noninvasively, and, therefore, studied serially. We are currently following up patients with both homogeneous and heterogeneous plaques to determine their natural history. . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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