News | Cardiac Imaging | May 02, 2022

Visual Ordinal Scoring of Coronary Artery Calcium on Chest CT

Routine visual ordinal coronary artery calcium assessment on all chest CT examinations could identify a large number of patients who might benefit from preventive therapies

(A) mild, (B) moderate, (C) severe CAC on non-gated contrast-enhanced chest CT. Image courtesy of American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS), American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR)

(A) mild, (B) moderate, (C) severe CAC on non-gated contrast-enhanced chest CT. Image courtesy of American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS), American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR)


May 2, 2022 — According to ARRS’ American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR), routine visual ordinal coronary artery calcium (CAC) assessment on all chest CT examinations could identify a large number of patients who might benefit from preventive therapies.

“Visual ordinal CAC assessment on both contrast-enhanced and non-contrast chest CT has high diagnostic performance, prognostic utility, and interobserver agreement,” confirmed corresponding author Kate Hanneman, MD, MPH, from Toronto General Hospital, University Health Network in Ontario.

Hanneman and colleagues’ retrospective study included 260 patients (mean age, 60; 158 male, 102 female) who underwent both non-gated chest CT (contrast-enhanced in 116 patients; non-contrast in 144 patients) and cardiac calcium-score CT within a 12-month interval. A cardiothoracic radiologist visually assessed CAC on chest CT using an ordinal scale: absent, mild, moderate, or severe.

Ultimately, visual ordinal assessment of coronary artery calcium on both contrast-enhanced and non-contrast non-gated chest CT has high sensitivity (83% vs 90%, p=.20) and specificity (100% vs 100%, p=.99), prognostic utility (HR 4.5, p=.02 and HR 3.4, p=.003, respectively), and excellent interobserver agreement (κ=0.89 and κ=0.95, respectively).

“Routine reporting of CAC on all chest CT examinations regardless of clinical indication and contrast material administration could identify a large number of patients with previously unknown CAC who might benefit from preventive treatment,” Hanneman added.

For more information: www.arrs.org

Related Calcium Scoring Content:

Study Finds Removing Cost from Calcium Score Testing Increased Utilization

How the Agatston Calcium Score Was Created and its Impact on Heart Attack Prevention

VIDEO: The History of CT Calcium Scoring — Interview with Arthur Agatston, M.D.

VIDEO: New Cholesterol Guidelines Support CT Calcium Scoring for Risk Assessment — Interview with Matthew Budoff, M.D.

CT Scan For Arterial Plaque is Better at Predicting Heart Attack Than Stroke


Related Content

News | Cardiac Imaging

November 16, 2023 — Cardiovascular diseases rank among the top causes of death across the world, and cardiac ...

Home November 16, 2023
Home
News | Cardiac Imaging

September 21, 2023 — Declines in cardiovascular procedure volumes observed early in the COVID-19 pandemic greatly ...

Home September 21, 2023
Home
News | Cardiac Imaging

July 11, 2023 — Hyperfine, Inc., the groundbreaking medical device company that created the Swoop system, the world’s ...

Home July 11, 2023
Home
Feature | Cardiac Imaging | By Matthew Jay Budoff, MD, FACC, FAHA

Coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) is cheaper, easier to use and its results are easier to understand than ...

Home July 10, 2023
Home
News | Cardiac Imaging

June 29, 2023 — According to an accepted manuscript published in ARRS’ own American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR) ...

Home June 29, 2023
Home
News | Cardiac Imaging

June 26, 2023 — Jubilant DraxImage Inc., dba Jubilant Radiopharma, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Jubilant Pharma Limited ...

Home June 26, 2023
Home
News | Cardiac Imaging

June 15, 2023 — Dr. Jonathan Weinsaft, an esteemed physician-scientist who focuses on clinical research and ...

Home June 15, 2023
Home
News | Cardiac Imaging

June 9, 2023 — According to an accepted manuscript published in ARRS’ own American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR) ...

Home June 09, 2023
Home
Feature | Cardiac Imaging | By Mohammad Sahebjalal, MD

Invented in 1896 by Enrico Salvioni, the fluoroscope remains a flagship technology of modern medicine. The live video X ...

Home May 04, 2023
Home
News | Cardiac Imaging

April 26, 2023 — In the majority of cases, graft failure after heart transplantation is attributable to abnormalities ...

Home April 26, 2023
Home
Subscribe Now