Abstract
Cardiac CT angiography (CCTA) has become a mainstream and integral part of many cardiology practices based on a vast base of literature supporting and validating its clinical utility. It is now recommended as a first-line test for the evaluation of chest pain according to the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC). As the technology continues to advance, coronary imaging has improved in stride. Unfortunately, despite an arsenal of tests available to detect clinically significant coronary artery disease, many people continue to suffer acute myocardial infarction (MI) and other acute coronary syndromes, leading to significant morbidity and mortality due to unstable coronary artery disease (CAD). These unstable, “vulnerable” or high-risk plaques (HRP) continue to plague cardiologists across the globe. The ability to identify HRP has been a step in the right direction increasing more aggressive therapy. A large body of evidence supporting the utility of CCTA in plaque imaging has emerged and has defined characteristics of HRPs and their relationship to future coronary events. The potential of CCTA plaque imaging exists to not only identify HRP that can lead to more aggressive therapy, but to observe the transformation to stable plaque through follow-up CCTA imaging.
Keywords
Cardiac Computed Tomography Angiography (CCTA), Low attenuation plaque (LAP), Calcified coronary Plaque (CP), Non-calcified coronary plaque (NCP), Artificial intelligence (AI), Plaque Imaging, PCI planning