Prognostic Value of Serial Coronary CT Angiography in Atherosclerotic Plaque Modification: What Have We Learnt?

AbstractPurpose  of reviewTo provide an update and to outline the status of coronary computer tomography angiography (CCTA) in the evaluation of coronary plaques and discuss the relevance of serial CCTA in guiding cardiovascular risk stratification and anti-atherosclerotic medical therapy.Recent findingsCoronary CTA is now the imaging modality of choice in monitoring changes in coronary plaque. It has been used in innumerable clinical trials which have demonstrated the benefits of several therapeutic agents and has excellent correlation with previously used invasive imaging modalities. It is safe, fast, less cumbersome, and a cost-effective testing method compared to other invasive imaging modalities for coronary plaque analysis.SummaryThe emergence of a noninvasive imaging modality such as CCTA now permits quantification not only of plaque burden but also allows for further distinction of plaque components and identification of vulnerable plaques. The application of these findings continues to extend the prospect of coronary CTA in evaluation and management of atherosclerotic coronary artery disease (CAD) in clinical practice. In the future, artificial intelligence and machine learning will play a significant role in plaque analysis allowing for high accuracy and reproducibility which will lead to a substantial increase in the utilization of coronary CTA.
Source: Current Cardiovascular Imaging Reports - Category: Radiology Source Type: research