MUNICH, Germany, Jul 28, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- German researchers say they
may be able to predict future severe cardiac events in patients with known
coronary disease using coronary calcium scoring.
Coronary artery disease is a condition in which plaque -- cholesterol, calcium,
fat and other substances -- builds up inside the arteries that supply blood to
the heart.
When plaque builds up in the coronary arteries, blood flow to the heart is
reduced and may lead to arrhythmia, heart attack or heart failure.
Lead author Dr. Marcus Hacker of Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich,
Germany, said single photon emission computed tomography myocardial perfusion
imaging is a nuclear medicine diagnostic procedure that provides excellent
three-dimensional images of the coronary arteries to assist in the diagnosis and
treatment of coronary artery disease.
Calcium scoring -- measuring the amount of calcium in the arteries -- is used as
a screening exam and in cases of suspected coronary artery disease, but not in
cases of known coronary artery disease .
For the study, 260 patients with coronary artery disease underwent coronary
artery calcium scoring in addition to SPECT myocardial perfusion imaging. The
patients were tracked over a median period of 5.4 years,
Twenty-three of the 260 patients had a fatal or severe heart attack, and 40
additional patients underwent bypass surgery.
The study, published in the journal Radiology, showed patients with an initial
calcium score greater than 400 were at significantly increased risk for severe
cardiac events.
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