August 19, 2008–ScienceDaily–Repeat exams using widely available and inexpensive ultrasound imaging could help identify patients at high risk for a heart attack or other adverse cardiovascular events, according to a study published in the September issue of the journal Radiology. Heart attack is one of the causes of sudden cardiac arrest.

Researchers performed ultrasound imaging on the carotid arteries of 1,268 patients who were asymptomatic but at high risk for cardiovascular disease. Of those, ultrasound determined that 574 patients had carotid artery disease, as determined by the amount of plaque built up in the two vessels that supply blood to the head and neck. Each of those patients had a second ultrasound exam six to nine months later to measure changes in the plaque lining the arteries.