Abstract-The pathophysiology of restenosis involves early elements of direct injury to smooth muscle cells, deendothelialization, and thrombus deposition. Over time, this leads to smooth muscle cell proliferation/migration and extracellular matrix deposition. There is an increasing body of evidence to suggest that inflammation plays a pivotal role linking early vascular injury to the eventual consequence of neointimal growth and lumen compromise. The widespread use of coronary stents has fundamentally altered the vascular response to injury by causing a more intense and prolonged inflammatory state.

Background-Low endothelial shear stress (ESS) promotes the development of atherosclerosis; however, its role in the progression of atherosclerotic plaques and evolution to inflamed high-risk plaques has not been studied. Our hypothesis was that the lowest values of ESS are responsible for the development of high-risk coronary atherosclerotic plaques associated with excessive expansive remodeling. Methods and Results-Twenty-four swine, treated with streptozotocin to induce diabetes and fed a high-fat diet, were allocated into early (nϭ12) and late (nϭ12) atherosclerosis groups. Intima-media thickness was assessed by intravascular ultrasound in the coronary arteries at weeks 4 and 8 in the early group and weeks 23 and 30 in the late group. Plaques started to develop after week 8, leading to marked heterogeneity in plaque severity at week 30. ESS was calculated in plaque-free subsegments of interest (nϭ142) in the late group at week 23. Coronary arteries (nϭ31) of this group were harvested at week 30, and the subsegments of interest were identified and analyzed histopathologically. Low ESS was an independent predictor of the development of high-risk plaques, characterized by intense lipid accumulation, inflammation, thin fibrous cap, severe internal elastic lamina degradation, and excessive expansive remodeling. The severity of high-risk plaque characteristics at week 30 was significantly correlated with the magnitude of low ESS at week 23. Conclusions-The