Coronary CT speed, resolution edge out catheter angiography

March 4, 2008 Diagnostic Imaging. Coronary CT speed, resolution edge out catheter angiography With its 95% accuracy, practitioners increasingly choose CTA as theimaging modality for suspected or known coronary artery disease CONSTANTINO PEÑA, M.D. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The potential benefits of CT angiography have expanded greatly in the 30 years since its introduction. Although imaging of the coronary arteries was a goal from the early days of CT, slow speeds and poor resolution prevented expansion into that area initially. The advent of multislice CT in the last decade has increased speeds and improved resolution, allowing increasingly accurate imaging of the ever-moving small coronary arteries. Our institution has begun to move in recent years toward less invasive methods of diagnosis and treatment planning, electing to strengthen our CT and MRI capabilities rather than add more catheterization labs. Its noninvasive nature and 3D imaging capabilities give CTA a growing number of ways to be used to study the heart and coronaries, ranging from diagnosis to procedural guidance and follow-up of interventions. In addition to helping diagnose and determine treatment for coronary artery disease, CTA is now starting to be employed to assess cardiac function, wall motion, ejection fraction/perfusion, and structural heart disease. It is also being used for guidance in procedures such as radiofrequency ablation in patients with atrial fibrillation.

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