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PURPOSE: To prospectively determine, by using a stepwise logistic regression model, the optimal magnetic resonance (MR) weighting (ie, pulse sequence) combinations for plaque assessment and corresponding cutoff values of relative signal intensities (rSIs).

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Institutional review board approval and patient consent were obtained. Eleven patients (seven men, four women; mean age ± standard deviation, 68 years ± 4) with symptomatic carotid disease and stenosis of more than 70% were investigated at MR imaging before carotid endarterectomy. The MR images were matched with histologic features of the endarterectomy specimens (reference standard). The rSIs (compared with that of muscle tissue) from regions of interest were assessed qualitatively and semiquantitatively. For all major components (calcification, lipid core, intraplaque hemorrhage, and fibrous tissue), optimal …