Although current guidelines recommend radiologists evaluate CAC on all non-gated, non-contrast chest CT scans, the authors of the study note that these guidelines are not consistently followed.

The results of a study published in Radiology: Cardiothoracic Imaging call into question the value of initiating aspirin therapy in certain instances.

HeartFlow’s non-invasive cardiac computed tomography derived fractional flow reserve (FFR-CT) technology enables FFR values for the entire coronary tree of a patient using just a CT scan. This can show the significance of any coronary plaque lesions and if a patient needs to be sent to the cath lab for revascularization, or if they can be treated medically.

Despite increases of 250% for CTA and 428% for CTP, researchers observed lower rates of neuroimaging utilization among rural residents, older individuals (80 years and above), women and Black patients.

Randall Thompson, MD, immediate past president of the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC), explains the current ASNC lobbying efforts.

A new, multi-society document, "Non-Invasive Imaging in Coronary Syndromes," focuses on how multiple imaging techniques can evaluate different aspects of coronary artery disease (CAD), all without the need for invasive angiograms.

"A CT-first strategy allows physicians to provide relevant findings without the need for an invasive procedure," one radiologist explained. 

Duly Health and Care in suburban Chicago recently opened a new outpatient cardiac evaluation center equipped with a dedicated cardiac CT system, which will likely be a new business model that will be seen more in the coming years.