Coronary disease & ACSCohort study
Relationship Between Macrophage Arc and Plaque Vulnerability in Patients With Coronary Artery Disease
- multicenter, retrospective study
- consecutive patients
Authors' conclusion
Macrophage arcs are associated with plaque vulnerability and AMI. Further external validation and prospective studies are needed to confirm these observations.
Study context
- Population
- Patients with coronary artery disease who underwent optical coherence tomography (January 2017-April 2023)patients (1,278 vessels, 1,525 vulnerable plaques)
- Participants
- 1,129 patients
- Exposure
- Macrophage arc (maximum arc, mean arc, mean arc score (MAS)) in relation to plaque rupture (PR), thin-cap fibroatheroma (TCFA) and acute myocardial infarction (AMI) at admission
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Macrophage arc in PR, TCFA and AMI cases
Macrophage arc significantly increased in cases of PR, TCFA and AMI
P < 0.0001
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Mean arc and MAS in regions adjacent to PR or TCFA vs entire segment
- Mean arc and MAS markedly higher in regions adjacent to PR or TCFA compared with the entire segment
- P < 0.0001
Multivariate association of maximum arc, mean arc and MAS with PR, TCFA and AMI
- Maximum arc, mean arc and MAS correlated with PR, TCFA and AMI
- multivariate analyses
Optimal cutoff values by receiver operating characteristic analysis
- maximum arc
- ≥156.5°
- mean arc
- ≥78.89°/mm
- MAS
- ≥2.34
- Each significantly associated with PR, TCFA, and AMI, respectively
- all P < 0.001
Original publication
Relationship Between Macrophage Arc and Plaque Vulnerability in Patients With Coronary Artery Disease. JACC Adv. Published 19 August 2026. doi:10.1016/j.jacadv.2026.103167
Summarised from the published abstract; every number is checked against it