Premium
Changes in Internal Carotid Artery Doppler Velocity Measurements With Different Angles of Insonation
Author(s) -
Campbell Kari A.,
Kupinski Ann Marie,
Miele Frank R.,
Silva Philip F.,
Zierler R. Eugene
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of ultrasound in medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.574
H-Index - 91
eISSN - 1550-9613
pISSN - 0278-4297
DOI - 10.1002/jum.15579
Subject(s) - medicine , internal carotid artery , doppler effect , standard deviation , nuclear medicine , common carotid artery , carotid arteries , asymptomatic , doppler ultrasound , ultrasound , anatomy , radiology , cardiology , surgery , mathematics , statistics , physics , astronomy
Objectives Doppler velocity measurements are fundamental diagnostic criteria for vascular ultrasound examinations. Insonation angles are kept to 60° or less to minimize error. The purpose of this study was to assess variance of Doppler‐detected peak systolic velocity (PSV) measurements in the internal carotid arteries at different angles (45°, 50°, 55°, and 60°) with different beam steering. Methods The PSV was recorded from the right and left internal carotid arteries in 22 asymptomatic volunteers with straight vessels (total of 44 vessels). A standardized approach was used for recording velocities with the Doppler cursor center steered and steered 15° from right to left. An analysis of variance was performed. Results The PSV varied significantly with the 4 different angles of insonation ( P < .01). The maximum variation between 45° and 60° angles within a single vessel was 29 cm/s. The average variation over the 4 angles was 14 ± 6 cm/s. Relative to the calculated mean velocity for all patients, the standard deviation for the PSV at 60° was nearly twice that recorded at 50° (7.9 versus 3.9). The best correlation of the calculated mean velocity for all patients existed between the angles of 45° and 50° [ r (36) = 0.92; P < .001 for center‐steered data; and r (40) = 0.96; P < .001 for right‐steered data]. Conclusions These results indicate a statistically significant difference in the PSV measurements taken at varying Doppler angles. The greatest mean, variance, and lowest correlations all result when using 60°. The findings support the need for consistent ultrasound techniques and suggest that further study is warranted regarding the optimal Doppler angle for velocity measurements.