[What factors affected image quality in coronary multidetector-row computed tomography?].
BACKGROUND
Although it is well known that we usually cannot acquire a high quality coronary MDCT in patients with arrhythmia or incomplete breath-hold, we sometimes also cannot obtain a high quality coronary MDCT in patients without arrhythmia or incomplete breath-hold.


OBJECTIVE
We studied what factors other than arrhythmia or incomplete breath-hold affected image quality.


METHODS
Coronary MDCT and echocardiography were performed within one month in 2145 patients, and 452 cases of arrhythmia or 102 cases of incomplete breath-hold during scanning were eliminated. The remaining 1591 patients were studied. Those patients were divided into two groups (mid-diastolic phase reconstruction (MD) group (N=1377) and end-systolic phase reconstruction (ES) group (N=214)). Age, body weight, mean heart rate (HR) during scanning, temporal resolution (TR) and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) by echocardiography were estimated. Image quality (A: Excellent (3 points), B: Acceptable (2 points), C: Unacceptable (1 point)) was evaluated.


RESULTS
The mean image quality points of the MD group (2.9±0.3) were significantly (P<0.0001) higher than the mean image quality points of the ES group (2.3±0.7), and the mean HR of the MD group (57±6 bpm) was significantly (P<0.0001) lower than that of the ES group (81±15 bpm). In the MD group, HR and TR were selected as significant factors affecting image quality by stepwise regression analysis. In the ES group, TR and HR were selected. In the ES subgroup with HR<90 bpm, TR and HR were selected; however, in the ES subgroup with HR≥90 bpm, TR and LVEF were selected.


CONCLUSIONS
In the MD group, low HR was important for high quality coronary MDCT. In the ES subgroup with HR<90, short TR and low HR were important; however, in the ES subgroup with HR≥90 bpm, TR and LVEF were more important than HR.
Arai
Takehiro
T
Department of Radiological Technology, Takase Clinic.
Kondo
Takeshi
T
Morita
Hitomi
H
Sano
Tomonari
T
Matsutani
Hideyuki
H
Sekine
Takako
T
Shigoka
Noriko
N
Orihara
Tadaaki
T
Kondo
Makoto
M
Kodama
Takahide
T
Ooida
Akitsugu
A
Takase
Shinichi
S
D000368:Aged; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D017023:Coronary Angiography / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D011856:Radiographic Image Enhancement; D013318:Stroke Volume; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods