Francesca Pugliese, MD

Coronary artery calcium measurement with cardiac CT has been used for cardiovascular risk assessment since 1990.

Acute coronary syndromes include ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and unstable coronary artery disease. The latter includes non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) and unstable angina.

If multislice CT can rule out obstructive coronary artery disease, time and cost of care would be reduced and risk stratification improved

Coronary CT angiography has been found to be a powerful tool to evaluate patients suspected of coronary artery disease who are at low to intermediate risk. The task now for many researchers is to further refine specific patient populations for whom coronary CTA can be beneficial. One such patient niche being explored is the group with unstable angina and/or non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction.