Carotid Intima-Media Thickness (CIMT) Testing: WHAT IS IT? CIMT is a non-invasive test done by placing an ultrasound transducer over the carotid arteries on both sides of the neck.  The carotid arteries mirror the coronary arteries as the relationship between atherosclerotic disease in a carotid artery and a coronary artery is the same as between any two coronary arteries.  CIMT is an independent predictor of future cardiovascular events, including heart attacks, cardiac death and stoke.

People with thickening of the carotid walls have been shown to have up to a 4 times increased risk for stroke or heart attack than those without thickening. 

Thickening of the wall reflects inflammation, which can be caused by high blood pressure or cholesterol deposition. 

CIMT is, therefore, another way to assess cardiac risk, typically at an earlier stage. This is a test that is used to predict an increased risk for heart attack and stroke in apparently healthy adults aged 40 and older.  It has some advantages over heart scans and that is the reason we are pleased to offer them in our office. 

The advantages of CIMT over EBCT (CAT scans of the heart) include the ability to pick up non-calcified plaque (“soft plaque”), the type more likely to occur in younger men and women.  Some of you who have invested in heart scans and have had a “zero” calcium score may be surprised to find that your CIMT test is not normal. 

Another advantage of CIMT is the lack of radiation.  The amount of radiation used to produce a heart scan is significant, and you may have seen articles expressing concern about the amount of radiation in these scans.  A particular concern is that women’s breast are right in the center of the radiation field during a heart scan. 

Finally, often trivial abnormalities in the lung fields of heart scans generate follow up scans, as well as a lot of worry (and many of you who have had heart scans can corroborate this!)  They are almost never of any clinical significance.

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Of note, CIMT is not the typical Lifeline Screening being offered by the mobile units. That test measures vascular flow abnormalities, which occur quite late in the progression of cardiovascular disease.
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A recent article (February 2009) endorses CIMT for detecting preclinical disease in younger adults : link here