Evolving understanding of the heterogeneous natural history of individual coronary artery plaques and the role of local endothelial shear stress
Antoniadis AP, Stone PH.
KEYWORDS
coronary artery plaques; local endothelial shear stress
PURPOSE OF REVIEW - Anatomic and morphologic features of high-risk coronary plaque have been identified by novel imaging modalities, but it has been less clear which ostensibly high-risk plaques will actually destabilize and cause a new cardiac event. Different plaques with different morphologies coexist within the same artery, but the impact of this heterogeneity on the natural history of coronary artery disease has not been extensively investigated.