The diagnostic evaluation of dual-source CT (DSCT) in the diagnosis of coronary artery stenoses

Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of dual-source computed tomography (DSCT) in the diagnosis of coronary artery stenoses by comparing with conventional coronary angiography (CCA).

Methodology: CCA and DSCT were performed in 64 patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD) respectively (46 male, 18 female, age from 48 to 82 years old, mean 68.18 years). Various post-processing reconstructions of coronary artery and its branches, such as volumetric imaging, multi-planar reconstruction, curved planar reconstruction, maximum intensity projection were used. The coronary segments, with statistical evaluations combined with its diameter ≥1.5mm were collected to analyze the diagnosis accuracy of DSCT on coronary artery stenoses, with CCA as the gold standard.

Results: About 4.14% of coronary artery segments could not be evaluated, while 95.86% were evaluable arteries, the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value of DSCT for detecting coronary artery stenoses were, 93.58%, 99.61%, 95.31% and 99.48% respectively. There were no significant differences in the diagnostic accuracy of coronary artery stenoses between DSCT and CCA.

Conclusion: DSCT is a reliable tool that is accurately appropriate for patients with CAD, as it has a higher accuracy and specificity, which is valuable in the screening of CAD.