Hypointensity on Carotid Plaque MRI and Its Relationship to Calcification: Histopathologic Validation With Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping.

BACKGROUND

On conventional carotid plaque MRI, calcification is commonly defined as a region that is hypointense across multiple contrast weightings. However, iron-containing components such as hemosiderin may exhibit similar signal characteristics, raising concerns regarding substrate specificity.

PURPOSE: To evaluate whether quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) can distinguish hemosiderin from calcification in carotid atherosclerotic plaques using ex vivo MRI with direct histopathologic correlation.

STUDY TYPE: Ex vivo specimen study.

SPECIMEN: Twenty-four carotid endarterectomy specimens obtained between October 2017 and August 2021.

FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: 3T MRI including spin-echo T1-weighted, spin-echo T2-weighted, time-of-flight-equivalent gradient-echo (FLASH) imaging, and multi-echo FLASH-based QSM reconstruction.

ASSESSMENT: Histologic sections were stained with hematoxylin-eosin, von Kossa (calcification), and Berlin blue (hemosiderin). With histopathologic findings as reference, two radiologists defined corresponding regions of interest on MRI for substrate-level signal characterization. Contrast-to-noise ratios (CNR) were measured on conventional sequences, and relative susceptibility values (rSV) were measured on QSM.

STATISTICAL TEST: Group comparisons were performed using the Wilcoxon rank-sum test. A two-sided p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

Seventy-nine matched cross-sections yielded 41 calcifications and 25 hemosiderin deposits, including 16 sections with both components. On T1-, T2-, and FLASH imaging, CNR values did not differ significantly between calcification and hemosiderin (p = 0.12, p = 0.096, and p = 0.67, respectively), with substantial signal overlap. On QSM, hemosiderin exhibited positive rSVs (mean ± SD: 506.8 ± 320.5 ppb), whereas calcification exhibited negative rSVs (-440.5 ± 296.3 ppb), without polarity overlap in this dataset and with a significant group difference. Hemosiderin deposition was identified in 25 of 79 matched sections, and calcification and hemosiderin coexisted in 16 sections.

DATA

CONCLUSIONS

Hypointensity on conventional carotid plaque MRI may not reliably indicate calcification at the substrate level. QSM enables robust differentiation between diamagnetic calcium and paramagnetic iron with histopathologic validation.

TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 2.