Summary: Increased lipid accumulation in the artery wall and atherosclerotic lesion development are two hallmarks of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Atheroma quantification and characterization assesses neutral lipid accumulation in the vessel wall, percentage of lesions per aortic segment (quantitative) and lesion morphology, complexity, and severity (qualitative).Modified from: Villablanca AC, et.al. J Cardiovasc Transl Res. 2009 Sep;2(3):289-99.