The role of carotid atherosclerotic plaque neovascularization in the indicator of plaque vulnerability:a meta-analysis
Wu Pingyong
Chen Wenwei
Hu Wei
Sun Bin
Chen Liao
Huang Xingyue
Huang Xin
Abstract：Objective To study the clinical value of contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) for diagnosing carotid atherosclerotic plaque. Methods We searched the databases including The Cochrane Library (Issue 3, 2016), EMbase, PubMed for diagnostic tests on carotid atherosclerotic plaque diagnosed with CEUS vs. with pathological biopsy or systemic (golden standard) from 1982 to the November, 2016. Two reviewers independently screened literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted data, and assessed the methodological quality of the included studies according to (Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies, QUADAS) items. The Meta-DiSc software (version 1.4) was used to conduct pooling on sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood radio, and negative likelihood radio. Heterogeneity test was performed and the summary receiver operating characteristic curve (SROC) was drawn for area under the curve (AUC). Results A total of 7 studies involving 507 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that, SEN, SPE, +LR, -LR and DOR were (0.68, 95%CI: 0.63~0.73), (0.78, 95%CI: 0.72~0.84), (3.16, 95%CI: 0.93~10.72), (0.34, 95%CI: 0.19~0.61) and (9.47, 95%CI: 3.33~26.95), respectively. The AUC of SROC curve was 0.8346. Conclusion Current evidence shows that CEUS is a promising noninvasive diagnostic modality for detecting intra-plaque neovascularization. Standardization of quantitative analysis and visual grading classification is needed to increase reliability and reduce technical heterogeneity.
Keywords：Carotid atherosclerotic plaqueContrast enhanced ultrasoundMeta-analysisDiagnostic testIntra-plaque neovascularization
Publication Date：2017-01-01
Online Publishing Date：2025-08-15(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：6( 1310-1315 )