Coronary CT angiography and myocardial perfusion imaging to detect flow-limiting stenoses: a potential gatekeeper for coronary revascularization?
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of a combined non-invasive assessment of coronary artery disease with coronary CT angiography (CTA) and myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) for the detection of flow-limiting coronary stenoses and its potential as a gatekeeper for invasive examination and treatment.


RESULTS
In 78 patients (mean age 65 +/- 9 years) referred for coronary angiography (CA), additional CTA and MPI (using single-photon emission-computed tomography) were performed and the findings not communicated. Detection of flow-limiting stenoses (justifying revascularization) by the combination of CTA and MPI (CTA/MPI) was compared with the combination of quantitative coronary angiography (QCA) plus MPI (QCA/MPI), which served as standard of reference. The findings of both combinations were related to the treatment strategy (revascularization vs. medical treatment) chosen in the catheterization laboratory based on the CA findings. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value, and accuracy of CTA/MPI for the detection of flow-limiting coronary stenoses were 100% each. More than half of revascularization procedures (21/40, 53%) was performed in patients without flow-limiting stenoses and 76% (47/62) of revascularized vessels were not associated with ischaemia on MPI.


CONCLUSIONS
The combined non-invasive approach CTA/MPI has an excellent accuracy to detect flow-limiting coronary stenoses compared with QCA/MPI and its use as a gatekeeper appears to make a substantial part of revascularization procedures redundant.
Gaemperli
Oliver
O
Cardiac Imaging, University Hospital Zurich, Ramistrasse 100, CH-8091 Zurich, Switzerland.
Husmann
Lars
L
Schepis
Tiziano
T
Koepfli
Pascal
P
Valenta
Ines
I
Jenni
Walter
W
Alkadhi
Hatem
H
Lüscher
Thomas F
TF
Kaufmann
Philipp A
PA
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017023:Coronary Angiography / Q000379:methods*; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D023921:Coronary Stenosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D055414:Myocardial Perfusion Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D009204:Myocardial Revascularization / Q000379:methods; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon / Q000379:methods*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*