The Application Value of Transcranial Doppler Ultrasound in Cerebrovascular Diseases

Cerebrovascular diseases (CVDs) are among the most prevalent disorders in the field of neurology. Given their high incidence and mortality rates, the accurate assessment of cerebral arterial hemodynamics is of crucial significance for the diagnosis and treatment of CVDs. Transcranial Doppler Ultrasound (TCD) is a non-invasive diagnostic modality for the detection of CVDs. Currently, the main application aspects of TCD in CVDs include the precise identification of diseased blood vessels, the evaluation of collateral circulation efficiency, and the investigation of cerebral blood flow autoregulation function. However, relatively few studies have been conducted on cerebral blood flow autoregulation function. This study primarily demonstrates that TCD and digital subtraction angiography (DSA) exhibit good consistency in the detection of intracranial collateral circulation patency, and that cerebral vascular hemodynamics is positively correlated with the degree of cerebral vascular stenosis. Meanwhile, in ischemic cerebrovascular disease (ICVD), the decrease in mean flow velocity (Vm) and the increase in pulsatility index (PI) in the vertebral artery and basilar artery can serve as potential evaluation indicators for this disease. The combination of TCD and color Doppler ultrasound enables more accurate assessment of the degree of vascular stenosis. The consistency of sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy between TCD combined with carotid artery ultrasound (CUS) and cerebral angiography in the diagnosis of transient ischemic attack (TIA) is relatively high. Meanwhile, the derived Breath-Holding Index (BHI, %/s) can be utilized as a risk assessment indicator for vascular cognitive impairment (VCI).