Table 1. Measurements of the carotid CT features (mean ± standard deviation) for the 3 cm on each side of the carotid bifurcation.
For Analysis #1 comparing stroke patients to non-stroke patients, values for the carotid artery ipsilateral to the infarct in the 40 "carotid stroke patients" and values for the more diseased carotid artery in the 50 "non-carotid stroke patients" were compared using unpaired T-tests for continuous variables and Mann-Whitney tests for categorical variables. For Analysis #2 comparing stroke side with contralateral side, values for the carotid artery ipsilateral to the infarct and values for the contralateral side in the 40 "carotid stroke patients" were compared using paired T-tests for continuous variables and McNemar tests for categorical variables. The CT features associated with a p value < 0.3 in univariate analysis are outlined in gray.
| Carotid Descriptor | Unit | Carotid stroke patients - infarct side | Carotid stroke patients - contralateral side | Non-carotid stroke patients - more diseased side | Analysis #1 | Analysis #2 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (comparison between infarct side in carotid stroke patients and more diseased side in non-carotid stroke patients) | (comparison between infarct side and contralateral side in carotid stroke patients) | |||||||||
| 95% Confidence | 95% Confidence | |||||||||
| Difference | Interval | p value | Difference | Interval | p value | |||||
| Lumen | ||||||||||
| Lumen Volume | [mm3] | 1154.2 ± 62.6 | 1241.4 ± 62.3 | 1245.6 ± 79.3 | −91.4 | −289.0 to +106.2 | 0.362 | −87.2 | −262.2 to +87.9 | 0.327 |
| Lumen Minimal Cross-Sectional Area | [mm2] | 23.9 ± 1.7 | 25.4 ± 1.5 | 27.7 ± 0.3 | −3.8 | −9.0 to +1.4 | 0.147 | −1.6 | −6.0 to +2.8 | 0.482 |
| Lumen Minimal Diameter | [mm] | 4.9 ± 0.2 | 5.0 ± 0.2 | 5.1 ± 0.2 | −0.3 | −.9 to +0.3 | 0.270 | −0.2 | −0.6 to +0.3 | 0.501 |
| NASCET % Lumen stenosis | % | 29.1% ± 4.9% | 23.9% ± 4.3% | 26.3% ± 4.1% | +2.7% | −9.3% to +14.9% | 0.647 | +5.2% | −17.0% to +6.6% | 0.386 |
| % patients with >50% stenosis | % | 15/40 | 2/40 | 10/50 | OR 2.4 | 0.8 to 6.3 | 0.065 | OR 2.5 | 0.4 to 27.6 | 0.279 |
| Wall | ||||||||||
| Wall Volume | [mm3] | 1404.1 ± 34.2 | 1281.9 ± 38.9 | 1206.1 ± 46.3 | +198.0 | +85.8 to +310.2 | 0.001 | +122.2 | +19.5 to +224.9 | 0.020 |
| Wall Maximal Thickness | [mm] | 5.0 ± 0.2 | 4.4 ± 0.2 | 4.2 ± 0.2 | +0.9 | +0.2 to +1.5 | 0.007 | +0.7 | +0.0 to +1.3 | 0.046 |
| Fibrous Cap Thickness | [mm] | 0.4 ± 0.1 | 0.6 ± 0.1 | 0.6 ± 0.1 | −0.2 | −0.3 to −0.1 | 0.000 | −0.2 | −0.3 to −0.1 | <0.001 |
| Ulcerations | ||||||||||
| (concave irregularities in the contour of the carotid lumen) | 17/40 | 11/40 | 34/80 | OR 1.0 | 0.5 to 2.2 | 0.891 | OR 1.9 | 0.7 to 5.5 | 0.159 | |
| Lipid-Rich | ||||||||||
| Necrotic Core | ||||||||||
| Volume of Lipids | [mm3] | 24.9 ± 3.1 | 16.4 ± 5.4 | 13.9 ± 3.5 | +11.0 | +3.7 to +11.6 | 0.280 | 8.3 | −4.4 to +21.3 | 0.196 |
| Percent of Lipids compared to the total number of voxels in the carotid wall | % | 1.7% ± 0.2% | 1.0% ± 0.4% | 1.1% ± 0.3% | +0.5% | −0.2% to +1.2% | 0.150 | +0.7% | +0.1% to +1.3% | 0.056 |
| Number of Lipids Clusters (20 or more "lipid" voxels adjacent to each other) | 10.5 ± 0.6 | 3.7 ± 0.5 | 4.3 ± 0.6 | +6.2 | +4.5 to +8.0 | 0.000 | +6.7 | +5.3 to +8.2 | <0.001 | |
| Lipid Cluster Maximal Size | [mm3] | 5.8 ± 0.8 | 3.1 ± 0.8 | 3.5 ± 0.9 | +2.3 | +0.1 to +4.6 | 0.046 | +2.7 | +0.4 to +4.9 | 0.019 |
| Location of the Largest Lipid Cluster | % wall from lumen | 3.9% ± 0.4% | 11.2% ± 1.0% | 12.5% ± 1.5% | −8.6% | −11.5% to −5.7% | 0.000 | −7.3% | −5.0 to −9.6% | <0.001 |
| Calcium | ||||||||||
| Volume of Calcium | [mm3] | 20.4 ± 7.3 | 36.7 ± 8.1 | 21.0 ± 6.1 | −0.6 | −19.8 to +18.6 | 0.952 | −16.3 | −37.9 to +5.2 | 0.136 |
| Percent of Calcium compared to the total number of Voxels in the carotid wall | % | 1.8% ± 0.5% | 2.4% ± 0.4% | 1.5%± 0.4% | 0.4% | −0.9% to +1.6% | 0.573 | −0.6 | 1.9 to + 0.8 | 0.442 |
| Number of Calcium Clusters (20 or more "calcium" voxels adjacent to each other) | 0.9 ± 0.1 | 1.1 ± 0.1 | 1.4 ± 0.2 | −0.5 | −0.9 to +0.0 | 0.060 | −0.3 | −0.6 to +0.2 | 0.266 | |
| Calcium Cluster Maximal Size | [mm3] | 6.2 ± 1.4 | 8.3 ± 1.5 | 6.8 ± 1.6 | −0.6 | −4.8 to +3.5 | 0.770 | −2.1 | −6.2 to +2.1 | 0.327 |
| Location of the Largest Calcium Cluster | % wall from lumen | 8.5% ± 1.2% | 10.0% ± 1.1% | 10.7% ± 1.3% | −2.2% | −5.8% to +1.4% | 0.220 | −1.5% | −4.8% to +1.8% | 0.269 |