Plaque Burden Measurement by Black-blood MR Imaging Technique in Intracranial and Extracranial Carotid Arteries in Acute Stroke Patients

Introduction: Concurrent atherosclerosis of the intracranial and extracranial cerebrovascular system is common in Asians . Atherosclerotic diseases occurring in carotid arteries and intracranial arteries have been demonstrated to be associated transient ischemic attack (TIA) and stroke . Recently, Black-blood magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been increasingly applied for assessment of the carotid artery and intracranial vessel wall . However, measure of plaque burden in intracranial and extracranial carotid arteries at the same individual by black-blood MRI and its association have not been determined. To investigate these correlations will be helpful for better understanding the heterogeneity of disease progression in these two vascular territories and potentially improving the predictive value for cerebrovascular events.