Superb microvascular imaging for detecting neovascularization of carotid plaque compared with contrast-enhanced ultrasound: A protocol for systematic review and meta analysis

BACKGROUND: Superb microvascular imaging (SMI) is a novel Doppler technique that depicts low velocity blood flow without the use of a contrast agent. Studies suggested that SMI may or may not detect neovascularization of carotid plaque with accuracy comparable to contrast-enhanced ultrasound. To gain clarity, a meta-analysis to systematically review and synthesize relevant data on the SMI for the detection of intraplaque neovascularization was undertaken. METHODS: We will search PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Chinese biomedical databases from their inceptions to the June 31, 2020, without language restrictions. Two authors will independently carry out searching literature records, scanning titles and abstracts, full texts, collecting data, and assessing risk of bias. Review Manager 5.2 and Stata14.0 software will be used for data analysis. RESULTS: This systematic review will investigate whether SMI is feasible on the detection of intraplaque neovascularization compared with contrast-enhanced ultrasound. CONCLUSION: Its findings will provide helpful evidence for the feasibility of SMI on the detection of intraplaque neovascularization. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: INPLASY202070097.