Accurate magnetic resonance imaging of atherosclerotic plaques: Change future strategies for the diagnosis and therapy of atherosclerotic disease

In recent years, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have been developed to image atherosclerosis and is emerging as a useful tool to assess the burden of atherosclerosis, whereas the potential influence on the diagnosis and therapy of atherosclerotic disease have not been fully determined. MRI allows for three-dimensional evaluation of vascular structures and outstanding depiction of various components of the atherosclerotic plaque. The self-contained intravascular MRI probe appears to hold promise in the identification of high-risk coronary and peripheral atherosclerotic lesions. Molecular and targeted contrast MRI can offer exciting possibilities of direct visualization of biologic processes within atherosclerotic tissue. The addition of quantitative hydrogen 1 magnetic resonance spectroscopy and diffusion weighted imaging within atherosclerotic plaques can provide important data on the biological activity of potentially vulnerable lesions. Therefore, we hypothesized that accurate magnetic resonance imaging of atherosclerotic plaques maybe further affect and change future strategies for the diagnosis and therapy of atherosclerotic disease.