Cardiac multidetector computed tomography (MDCT): method, indications and applications

Cardiac CT is a rapidly evolving field which provides a clinically useful modality for non invasive assessment of coronary artery and structural cardiac anatomy.Careful attention to patient preparation is required to produce optimal images.64 slice multidetector CT (MDCT) and post-processing algorithms provide excellent diagnostic quality images.Cardiac MDCT has a range of clinical applications including excluding coronary artery disease in low–intermediate risk patients and the evaluation of complex anatomical anomalies. Cardiac multidetector CT (MDCT) has evolved into a powerful tool in the clinical assessment of many cardiac conditions. With the new generation of 64 slice scanners and the increasingly powerful post-processing software it will have an ever-increasing role to play in clinical practice. The indications for cardiac MDCT include: exclusion of coronary artery disease in specific patient groups (i.e. those with low and intermediate risk of coronary disease); assessment of coronary artery bypa...