A cardiac CT scan is one of the options for routine cardiac examination which is currently increasingly in demand because it can visualize the structure of the heart and its blood vessels clearly in a non-invasive manner. In addition to calculating the calcium score, coronary angiography (imaging of coronary vessels) is also performed, making it also known as “CT Corâ€.
Cardiac CT Indications
Usually, your doctor will recommend a cardiac CT in order to:[1,2]
- Assess the presence of risk/suspicion of heart disease (both coronary narrowing and tumor)
- Evaluate your symptoms of chest pain/shortness of breath
- Evaluate anatomical/morphological abnormalities of the heart
- Evaluate heart condition before or after a medical procedure
Calcium Score
A calcium score is an evaluation of calcium deposits in atherosclerotic plaques formed in the coronary arteries. The following is the interpretation of the coronary calcium score.[3]
| Calcium Score | Interpretation | Risk of myocardial infarction at 10 years |
| 0 | Very low risk | <1% |
| 1-100 | Low risk | <10% |
| 101-400 | Moderate risk | 10-20% |
| 101-400 and >75th percentile | Moderately high risk | 15-20% |
| >400 | High risk | >20% |
What Patients Need to Prepare for a Cardiac CT in Abdi Waluyo
- The patient must be pre-registered.
- Bring the doctor’s referral letter.
- Fasting 4 hours before the scheduled examination (you may still drink mineral water).
- The patient should come at least 30 minutes before the examination.
- The patient must show his/her normal creatinine laboratory result (within the past 1 month).
References
- Murphy A, Wichmann J. Cardiac CT. RadiopaediaOrg 2013. https://doi.org/10.53347/RID-26438.
- Prat-Gonzalez S, Sanz J, Garcia MJ. Cardiac CT: Indications and Limitations. J Nucl Med Technol 2008;36:18–24. https://doi.org/10.2967/jnmt.107.042424.
- Chua A, Blankstein R, Ko B. Coronary artery calcium in primary prevention. Aust J Gen Pract 2020;49:464–9. https://doi.org/10.31128/AJGP-03-20-5277.
