Color Doppler ultrasonography in occlusive diseases of the brachiocephalic and proximal subclavian arteries.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the capability of color Doppler ultrasonography (CDU) in showing the brachiocephalic and proximal subclavian arteries and to determine the accuracy of CDU for diagnosis of occlusive diseases of those arteries. METHODS: Two groups of patients were examined. The first group was examined with CDU to determine whether the brachiocephalic and subclavian artery origins could be seen. The second group, including patients with occlusive arterial disease, was examined with CDU before digital subtraction angiography (DSA). Results of CDU and DSA were compared. RESULTS: In the first group, the origins of 42 (84%) of 50 brachiocephalic arteries, 48 (96%) of 50 right subclavian arteries, and 25 (50%) of 50 left subclavian arteries could be displayed by CDU. In the second group, 8 (89%) of 9 lesions on the right and 23 (96%) of 24 lesions on the left were diagnosed correctly. Color Doppler ultrasonography had sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy values of 88%, 94%, 78%, 97%, and 94%, respectively, for detecting major stenosis and 100%, 98%, 94%, 100%, and 99% for detecting occlusion. Agreement between the CDU and DSA findings was substantial for stenosis (kappa = 0.78) and almost perfect for occlusion (kappa = 0.96). CONCLUSIONS: The percentage of proximal left subclavian arteries shown on CDU was considerably lower compared with the right subclavian and brachiocephalic arteries. However, there was no significant difference between the two sides in diagnosing occlusive arterial diseases. With CDU, occlusion can be diagnosed more accurately than stenosis.