Observer performance in characterization of carotid plaque texture and surface characteristics with 3D versus 2D ultrasound

Abstract Objective To determine the reproducibility of three-dimensional (3D) ultrasound (US) over two-dimensional (2D) US in characterizing atherosclerotic carotid plaques using inter- and intra-observer agreement metrics. Methods A Total of 51 patients with 105 carotid artery plaques were screened...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Computers in biology and medicine 2016-11, Vol.78, p.58-64
Main Authors: Leong, Sook Sam, Vijayananthan, Anushya, Yaakup, Nur Adura, Shah, Nazri, Ng, Kwan Hoong, Acharya, U. Rajendra, Bilgen, Mehmet
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
2D ultrasonography
3D ultrasonography
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Agreements
Atherosclerosis
Calcification
Carotid arteries
Carotid artery plaque
Carotid Stenosis - diagnostic imaging
Female
Humans
Imaging, Three-Dimensional - methods
Internal Medicine
Male
Middle Aged
Morphology
Other
Plaque characterization
Plaque morphology
Plaque, Atherosclerotic - diagnostic imaging
Stroke
Ultrasonic imaging
Ultrasonography - methods
Visualization
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Summary:Abstract Objective To determine the reproducibility of three-dimensional (3D) ultrasound (US) over two-dimensional (2D) US in characterizing atherosclerotic carotid plaques using inter- and intra-observer agreement metrics. Methods A Total of 51 patients with 105 carotid artery plaques were screened using 3D and 2D US probes attached to the same US scanner. Two independent observers characterized the plaques based on the morphological features namely echotexture, echogenicity and surface characteristics. The scores assigned to each morphological feature were used to determine intra- and inter-observer performance. The level of agreement was measured using Kappa coefficient. Results The first observer with 2D US showed fair (k=0.4-0.59) and very strong (k >0.8) with 3D US intra-observer agreements using three morphological features. The second observer indicated moderate strong (k=0.6-0.79) with 2D US and very strong with 3D US (k>0.8) intra-observer performances. Moderate strong (k=0.6-0.79) and very strong (k>0.8) inter-observer agreements were reported with 2D US and 3D US respectively. The results with 2D and 3D US were correlated 62% using only echotexture and 56% using surface morphology coupled with echogenicity. 3D US gave a lower score than 2D 71% of the time (p=0.005) in disagreement cases. Conclusion High reproducibility in carotid plaque characterization was obtained using 3D US rather than 2D US. Hence, it can be a preferred imaging modality in routine or follow up plaque screening of patients with carotid artery disease.
ISSN:0010-4825
1879-0534
DOI:10.1016/j.compbiomed.2016.09.006