Appropriate Use Criteria for Cardiac Computed Tomography: Impact on Diagnostic Utility

This study investigates the impact of AUC on evaluability of CCT to determine if inappropriate tests result in a greater proportion of nondiagnostic results. Methods: Investigators reviewed the medical records of 2417 consecutive patients who underwent CCT at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. We applied the 2010 AUC and classified them as appropriate, inappropriate, or uncertain. Unclassifiable tests, as well as those with uncertain appropriateness, were excluded from the final analysis. Cardiac computed tomography results were classified as diagnostic if (1) all coronary segments were visualized, evaluable, and without obstructive stenosis; or (2) obstructive coronary artery disease with greater than 50% diameter stenosis in at least 1 coronary artery. All other test results were considered nondiagnostic. Results: Of the 1984 patients included in the final analysis, 1522 patients (76.7%) had indications that were appropriate, whereas the remaining 462 (23.3%) were inappropriate. Inappropriate tests resulted in a higher rate of nondiagnostic results compared with appropriate CCT (9.0% vs 6.2%, P = 0.034). Inappropriate tests also had significantly more studies with nonevaluable segments than appropriate tests (24.5% vs 16.4%, P
Source: Journal of Computer Assisted Tomography - Category: Radiology Tags: Cardiothoracic Imaging Source Type: research