BACKGROUND Cerebral emboli resulting from atherosclerosis at the carotid bifurcation is a major cause of ischemic stroke. A convenient and prompt evaluation is necessary for secondary prevention and treatment. METHODS In this study, one hundred and thirty eight patients with cerebral ischemic events were enrolled; 100 patients with nonischemic cerebral diseases were enrolled as controls. Noni...

OBJECTIVE To compare coronary artery calcium (CAC) progression between 2 treatment groups, pioglitazone versus glimepiride. METHODS AND RESULTS The CHICAGO (Carotid Intima-Media Thickness in Atherosclerosis Using Pioglitazone) study demonstrated that pioglitazone significantly decreased carotid intima-media thickness progression compared with glimepiride in patients with type 2 diabetes melli...

The aim of this study was to determine the changes in carotid artery intima-media thickness as measured by B-mode ultrasound in postmenopausal women receiving hormone replacement therapy (HRT) or not. One hundred and fifty-nine healthy postmenopausal women aged 45-65 years were recruited from our menopause clinic. All the selected women were free of cardio-vascular diseases and had no cardio-va...

BACKGROUND Rupture of the cap of a vulnerable plaque present in a coronary vessel may cause myocardial infarction and death. Cap rupture occurs when the peak cap stress exceeds the cap strength. The mechanical stress within a cap depends on the plaque morphology and the material characteristics of the plaque components. A parametric study was conducted to assess the effect of intima stiffness a...