CT Coronary Angiogram

A computerized tomography (CT) coronary angiogram is an imaging test that looks at the heart arteries that supply blood to your heart. It could be used to diagnose the cause of chest pain and check your heart for various conditions. It is primarily used for detection of narrowing or obstruction of heart arteries (coronary heart disease) allowing for potentially corrective therapy to be done.

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CT Coronary Angiography is highly recommended as it is very accurate in providing the anatomical information about your coronary arteries. It detects the abnormal narrowing (stenosis) of the coronary arteries ranges from no narrowing (0%), minimal narrowing (<25%), mild narrowing (25-49%), moderate narrowing (50-69%), severe narrowing (70%-99%) to complete occlusion (100%).

It also helps to characterize the types of plaques that a person has in the coronary arteries. i.e., calcified plaque, soft plaque or mixed plaque. In addition, it also provides the important information about the origin and pathway of the coronary arteries. Some people were born with abnormal origin of the coronary artery and the coronary artery runs in abnormal pathway which is at risk of being compressed in between the ascending aorta and main pulmonary artery. This may result in myocardial ischemia (a condition where the heart muscle is starved of oxygen due to inadequate blood supply) and sudden death.

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Advantages:

• CT coronary angiogram is non-invasive and is one of the most accurate tests to detect coronary heart disease and is able to eliminate the need for invasive coronary angiography.

• CT coronary angiogram gives more precise anatomical detail than other imaging. It can detect 0%-100% narrowing of the heart artery even before the patient becomes symptomatic.

• There is also potentially less discomfort compared to invasive coronary angiography because contrast material is injected into an arm vein.