Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Intravascular Ultrasound Imaging: State of the Art

Acute coronary syndromes (ACS) secondary to coronary vessel plaques represent a major cause of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality worldwide. Advancements in imaging technology over the last 3 decades have continuously enabled the study of coronary plaques via invasive imaging methods like intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) and optical coherence tomography (OCT). The introduction of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) as a modality that could detect the lipid (cholesterol) content of atherosclerotic plaques in the early nineties, opened the potential of studying “vulnerable” or rupture-prone, lipid-rich coronary plaques in ACS patients. Most recently, the ability of NIRS-IVUS to identify patients at risk of future adverse events was shown in a prospective multicenter trial, the Lipid-Rich-plaque Study. Intracoronary NIRS-IVUS imaging offers a unique method of coronary lipid-plaque characterization and could become a valuable clinical diagnostic and treatment monitoring tool.