Aim To evaluate the changes of the strain and the strain rate at carotid atherosclerotic plaque in cerebral infarction patients by velocity vector imaging （VVI）. Methods 188 carotid plaques in cerebral infarction patients and 154 carotid plaques in patients with no-cerebral infarction were selected. Every plaque was examined by Siemens Sequoia 512 with VVI work station. The maximum strain （Smax） and maximum strain rate （SRmax） at the shoulder, surface and base of plaque in short axis were measured. Results The Smax, SRmax at plaque shoulder were higher significantly than that at plaque surface and plaque base, and the SRmax at plaque surface was higher than that at plaque base in both groups. The SRmax at the soft plaque shoulder was higher than that at the hard plaque in both groups （P<0.05）. The SRmax at plaque shoulder and the soft plaque shoulder in the cerebral infarction group were higher than that in the no-cerebral infarction group （P<0.05）. Conclusion VVI technology can be mechanical characteristics of quantitative detection of carotid artery in cerebral infarction patients with different plaques, which provides a new method for clinical analysis of the stability of plaque.