lhe most accepted standard tool or cardiologists tor assessing stenoses severity in the coronary tree is coronary angiography. Information from coronary angiography is limited to geometrical data on the coronary lumen, and provides limited functional data on the severity of stenoses. In addition, histopathological studies have demonstrated that angiographic evidence of stenosis is usually detected when the cross-sectional area of a plaque approaches 40% to 50% of the total cross-sectional area of the vessel [1]. Hence, managing the intermediate coronary lesions (40% to 70% diameter stenosis) are a true challenge for cardiologists.
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