Ultrasonic-pathologic comparison of postangioplasty myointimal hyperplasia and primary atheroma of the superficial femoral artery

The purpose of this study was to characterize postangioplasty myointimal hyperplasia as compared to primary atheroma of superficial femoral arteries using color-coded duplex sonography (CCD), and to correlate sonographic findings with the histopathology of samples obtained from these lesions by catheter atherectomy (Redha-cut device). Preinterventionally, homogeneity, echogeneity, and the surface of plaques were described using CCD in nine cases with secondary stenoses after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty and in seven cases with primary atheroma. Myointimal hyperplasia of femoral restenoses showed a homogeneous (7 of 9 vs. 1 of 7) and hypoechogenic (7 of 9 vs. 0 of 7) wall thickening compared to primary atheromas (p < 0.05). Primary atherosclerotic plaques showed a rather heterogeneous, hypo- and hyperechogenic ultrasonic appearance with or without echo shadowing in six of seven cases. The surface of restenoses was more often regular than that of primary atherosclerotic lesions, but this finding did not reach statistical significance (6 of 9 vs. 2 of 7, p = 0.14). Thrombotic material appeared homogeneous and hypoechogenic in three of five cases and could not be discriminated from intimal hyperplasia. In summary, postangioplasty intimal hyperplasia is characterised by a hypoechogenic, homogeneous, rather regularly confined vessel wall thickening and can be differentiated from primary atheroma at CCD.