Assessment of left ventricular volumes and function: intraindividual comparison of multi-slice spiral CT and electron beam CT in an animal model.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate multi-slice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) for measurements of left ventricular volumes, ejection fraction (EF), and myocardial mass in comparison with electron beam CT (EBCT) as a reference method.


METHODS
Six minipigs underwent both standardized contrast-enhanced MSCT (effective acquisition time per cardiac cycle 125.7+/-30.1 ms, reconstructed slice thickness 8 mm) and EBCT (acquisition time 50 ms, collimated slice thickness 8 mm). The contrast-to-noise ratio of the left ventricle was measured in each animal, and the contour sharpness of the myocardium was analyzed. Volumes (EDV, ESV, SV) ejection fraction (EF), and muscle mass were calculated by MSCT and by EBCT using the slice summation method.


RESULTS
MSCT had a higher contrast-to-noise ratio and delineated the myocardial contours more sharply than EBCT. There was a close linear correlation between both modalities for all parameters (EDV: rP=0.88, ESV: rP=0.91, SV: rP=0.85, EF: rP=0.93; mass: rP=0.90; P<0.05 each). MSCT slightly overestimated ESV and slightly underestimated SV and EF compared with EBCT (P<0.05 each).


CONCLUSIONS
Image quality in MSCT is superior to that of EBCT. Functional parameters correlate well between both modalities, but the accuracy of MSCT is limited by its lower temporal resolution.
Wiese
T H
TH
Department of Radiology, Charité-University Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Rogalla
P
P
Taupitz
M
M
Wagner
S
S
Schnorr
J
J
Mews
J
J
Enzweiler
C N H
CN
Hermann
K G A
KG
Hamm
B
B
Lembcke
A
A
D000818:Animals; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D023421:Models, Animal; D013318:Stroke Volume; D013552:Swine; D013556:Swine, Miniature; D036542:Tomography, Spiral Computed; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left