From biology to imaging: Rethinking vulnerable plaques in coronary artery disease

Key Points

• To reassess the role of vulnerable plaques as indicators of patient risk in coronary artery disease.
• Evaluated existing evidence from high-resolution imaging techniques.
• Discussed the clinical implications of treating vulnerable plaques.
• Highlight the importance of longitudinal studies integrating clinical and biological data.
• Found that vulnerable plaques are more indicative of overall patient risk than specific lesions.
• Determined that routine intervention on non-culprit vulnerable plaques is not supported by current evidence.
• Emphasized that optimized medical therapy should remain the primary management approach.

Abstract