A study
by Hughes-Austin et al published in the Journalof the American College of Cardiology: Cardiovascular Imaging reported on the correlation between coronary artery calcium (CAC)
scores on 3 mm electrocardiography (ECG)-gated computed tomography (CT)
scans and standard 6 mm chest CT scans, and compared their associations of CAC
on each scan type with mortality risk.
The investigators analyzed CT studies of 4,544 patients (mean
age 68), who had standard 6mm CT that were followed with 3mm EKG gated CTs. The Agatston method quantified CAC on both
scans. The median CAC scores were lower
on 6 mm CTs compared to 3 mm CTs (22 vs.104 Agatston units, p <
0.001).
During the study
period 157 deaths were recorded. Adjusted
for traditional CVD risk factors, when CAC scores were evaluated as a
continuous variable each standard deviation higher CAC score on both 6 mm and
3 mm CTs was associated with 1.5-fold or 50% higher odds of mortality.
The authors
concluded that CAC scores on standard 6 mm chest CTs correlate well with 3 mm
ECG-gated CTs and can predict mortality risk similarly in patients whose CTs
were performed for other clinical indications without additional radiation
exposure or expense.
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