2082582 Application of Carotid Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound in Evaluation of Takayasu Arteritis and the Therapeutic Effect

Pathological findings have showed that severe inflammation of the vasa vasorum is a typical feature of Takayasu arteritis. Contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) has been used to demonstrate plaque neovascularization. However, whether CEUS could be used to assess the vasa vasorum and accordingly the activity of the involved arteries in patients with Takayasu arteritis has not been well studied. The purpose of this study was thus to investigate the value of CEUS in assessing the involved carotid arteries in patients with Takayasu arteritis. Twenty patients (16 female, 4 male) (age 30±13 y ) with Takayasu arteritis that mainly involved carotid arteries were included. Conventional carotid ultrasound and CEUS using contrast agent of Sonovue (Bracco, Germany) were performed using Esaote MYLAB Twice and GE Vivid E9 ultrasound instruments. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C reactive protein (CRP) data were collected. Follow up study was performed in 9 patients. CEUS showed diffused microbubbles in dramatically thickened carotid arterial walls (larger than 2mm) in these patients, and the thicker the carotid arterial wall, the more number of the microbubbles were displayed. The arterial wall thickness was reduced and the numbers of the contrast microbubbles decreased in patients with intense treatment. However, the quantity of the microbubbles by CEUS did not show significant correlation with the clinical laboratory test results and clinical symptoms. Carotid contrast-enhanced ultrasound allows assessment of neovascularization within the thickened arterial wall in Takayasu arteritis, and may be a supplemental tool to the conventional vascular ultrasound and provide useful information in evaluation of the activity and therapeutic effects of the lesions.