Clinical Applications of Cardiac Multi-Slice Computed Tomography

During the past few years, Multi-Slice Computed Tomography (MSCT) has emerged as a rapidly progressing technique with a high potential for non-invasive angiography. Recent studies using the latest 16-slice technology have demonstrated that the technique can detect coronary artery lesions with sensitivities and specificities of approximately 92% and 95%, respectively. In particular, the negative predictive value of the technique is very high, suggesting that MSCT could play an important role in excluding coronary artery disease prior to more invasive procedures. Besides noninvasive coronary angiography, several other potential applications of MSCT exist, including left ventricular function analysis and evaluation of pulmonary vein anatomy. Although data on these topics are still limited, initial results appear very promising. Thus, MSCT is likely to become a diagnostic modality integrated in clinical cardiology. The purpose of the present review is to provide an overview of the potential clinical applications of cardiac MSCT with emphasis on non-invasive coronary angiography.