New non-invasive method for intima-media thickness and intima-media compression measurements

In English Intim a-media thickness (IMT) is considered as a valuable marker of early atherosclerosis. We suggest a new algorithm for simultaneous measurements of absolute diameter at diastole, distension (diameter change), IMT at diastole and the intima-media compression (IMC) with a new fast, robust, high-resolution, and automatic algorithm utilizing the ultrasonic gray-scale information. The new algorithm is evaluated in a limited in vivo study on the common carotid artery of 5 healthy volunteers. The standard deviation within an investigation was (8 ± 4 μm; range 4-14 μm) during IMC measurements, (8 ± 5 μm; range 4-16 μm) during the measurements of the IMT at diastole, (30 ±36 μm; range 6-92 μm) during the distension measurements and (48 ±49 μm; range 15-134 μm) during the measurements of the lumen diameter at diastole. The evaluation shows that the algorithm is fast and that the reproducibility and resolution are more than sufficient for in vivo studies. © 2005 IEEE.