Noninvasive evaluation of coronary artery plaque with electrocardiographically-gated multislice computed tomography

Abstract

The study evaluated the feasibility of determining coronary lesion configuration, including coronary plaque, stenosis and calcification, by ECG-gated MSCT. The results were compared with the characteristics of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS). The overall sensitivity for diagnosing significant coronary stenosis was 80.2%, and the specificity was 95.6%. There were significant differences in plaque density among three groups (p<0.01). MSCT was feasible for the detection of coronary artery stenosis. And plaque composition could be clearly differentiated and classified by MSCT, which is a promising method of non-invasive risk assessment in patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease.