The role of coronary CT angiography in athletes.

The sudden death of a young or high-level athlete or adolescent during recreational sports is one of the events with the greatest impact on public opinion in modern society. Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the principal medical cause of death in athletes and can be the first and last clinical presentation of underlying disease. To prevent such episodes, pre-participation screening has been introduced in many countries to guarantee cardiovascular safety during sports and has become a common target among medical sports/governing organizations. Different cardiac conditions may cause SCD, with incidence depending on definition, evaluation methods, and studied populations, and a prevalence and etiology changing according to the age of athletes, with CAD most frequent in master athletes, while coronary anomalies and non-ischemic causes prevalent in young. To detect silent underlying causes early would be of considerable clinical value. This review summarizes the pre-participation screening in athletes, the specialist agonistic suitability visit performed in Italy, the anatomical characteristics of malignant coronary anomalies, and finally, the role of coronary CT angiography in such arena. In particular, the anatomical conditions suggesting potential disqualification from sport, the post-treatment follow-up to reintegrate young athletes, the diagnostic workflow to rule-out CAD in master athletes, and their clinical management are analyzed.

Pulmonary artery sling in a 22-month-old boy with 18q deletion syndrome: A rare but possible association.

The 18q deletion syndrome is a rare genetic condition characterized by a large variability in clinical phenotype and severity. Congenital heart diseases have been described by several previous reports, most commonly including pulmonary valve anomalies and septal defects. We describe a new case of a 22-month-old boy affected by 18q del syndrome found to have a symptomatic pulmonary artery sling. This study reports a new case of pulmonary artery sling associated with 18q del syndrome, providing an alert for pediatric cardiologists about less common cardiovascular anomalies, which can easily be missed, allowing for early diagnosis and appropriate care.

COVID-19-Associated Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in a Neonate with Atypical Coronary Artery Involvement.

OBJECTIVE: The study aimed to report a novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-associated multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) in a neonate found to have an atypical diffuse thickening in coronary artery walls whose diagnosis required a multi-imaging approach. STUDY DESIGN: A neonate presented at birth with multiple organ involvement and coronary artery anomalies. A diagnosis of MIS-C associated with COVID-19 was supported by maternal severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection during pregnancy, and by the presence of both immunoglobulin (Ig)-G against SARS-CoV-2 and spike-specific memory B-cells response in the neonatal blood. Other plausible causes of the multiple organ involvement were excluded. RESULT: At admission, a severe coronary artery dilatation was identified on echocardiography, supporting the diagnosis of the MIS-C Kawasaki-like disease; however, coronary artery internal diameters were found to be normal using cardiac computed tomography angiography. At discharge, comparing the two imaging techniques each other, the correct diagnosis resulted to be an abnormal thickening in coronary arterial walls. These findings suggest that the inflammatory process affecting the coronary arterial wall in MIS-C could result not only in typical coronary artery lesions such as dilatation of the lumen or aneurysms development but also in abnormal thickening of the coronary artery wall. CONCLUSION: Our case provides an alert for pediatric cardiologists about the complexity to assess coronary artery involvement in MIS-C and raises the question that whether an abnormal vascular remodeling, with normal inner diameters, is to be considered like coronary artery dilatation for risk stratification. KEY POINTS: · COVID-19 associated MIS-C can present in neonates with multiple organ involvement.. · Coronary artery assessment in neonatal MIS-C could be complex, and a multi-imaging approach could be required.. · Beside the typical coronary artery lesions, such as dilatation of the lumen or aneurysms, also abnormal thickening of the coronary artery wall can occur..

Cardiac-CT with the newest CT scanners: An incoming screening tool for competitive athletes?

Competitive athletes of all skill levels are at risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD) due to certain heart conditions. Prior to engagement in high-intensity athletics, it is necessary to screen for these conditions in order to prevent sudden cardiac death. Cardiac-CT angiography (CCTA) is a reliable tool to rule out the leading causes of SCD by providing an exceptional overview of vascular and cardiac morphology. This allows CCTA to be a powerful resource in identifying cardiac anomalies in selected patients (i.e. unclear symptoms or findings at ECG or echocardiography) as well as to exclude significant coronary artery disease (CAD). With the advancement of technology over the last few years, the latest generations of computed tomography (CT) scanners provide better image quality at lower radiation exposures. With the amount of radiation exposure per scan now reaching the sub-millisievert range, the number of CT examinations it is supposed to increase greatly, also in the athlete's population. It is thus necessary for radiologists to have a clear understanding of how to make and interpret a CCTA examination so that these studies may be performed in a responsible and radiation conscious manner especially when used in the younger populations. Our work aims to illustrate the main radiological findings of CCTAs and highlight their clinical impact with some case studies. We also briefly describe critical features of state-of-the-art CT scanners that optimize different acquisitions to obtain the best quality at the lowest possible dose.

Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography in the Clinical Workflow of Athletes With Anomalous Origin of Coronary Arteries From the Contralateral Valsalva Sinus.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to assess the role of coronary computed tomography-angiography (CCTA) in the workflow of competitive sports eligibility in a cohort of athletes with anomalous origin of the left-coronary artery (AOLCA)/anomalous origin of the right-coronary artery (AORCA) in an attempt to outline relevant computed tomography features likely to impact diagnostic assessment and clinic management. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with suspected AOLCA/AORCA at transthoracic echocardiography or with inconclusive transthoracic echocardiography underwent CCTA to rule out/confirm and characterize the anatomic findings: partially interarterial course or full-INT, high-take-off, acute-take-off-angle (ATO), slit-like origin, intramural course (IM), interarterial-course-length, and lumen-reduction/hypoplasia (HYPO). RESULTS: CCTA identified 28 athletes: 6 AOLCA (3 males; 20.3±11.0 y) and 22 AORCA (18 males; 29.1±16.5 y). Symptoms were present only in 13 athletes (46.4%; 10 AORCA). Four patients (3 AORCA) had abnormal rest electrocardiogram, 11 (40.7%; 9 AORCA) had abnormal stress-electrocardiogram. The INT course was observed in 15 athletes (53.6%): 6/6 AOLCA and 9/22 AORCA (40.9%). Slit-like origin was present in 7/22 AORCA (31.8%) and never in AOLCA. Suspected IM resulted in 3 AOLCA (50%), always with HYPO/ATO, and in 6/22 AORCA (27.3%) with HYPO. No statistically significant differences were found between asymptomatic/symptomatic patients in the prevalence of partially INT/INT courses, high-take-off/ATO, and slit-like ostium. A slightly significant relationship between suspected proximal-IM (r=0.47, P<0.05) and proximal-HYPO of anomalous vessel (r=0.65, P<0.01) resulted in AORCA and was confirmed on AOLCA/AORCA pooled analysis (r=0.58, P<0.01 for HYPO). All AOLCA/AORCA athletes were disqualified from competitive sports and warned to avoid vigorous physical efforts. Surgery was recommended to all AOLCA athletes and to 13 AORCA (3 asymptomatic), but only 6 underwent surgery. No major cardiovascular event/ischemic symptoms/signs developed during a mean follow-up of 49.6±39.5 months. CONCLUSION: CCTA provides essential information for safe/effective clinical management of athletes, with important prognostic/sport-activity implications.

Practical instructions for using drugs in CT and MR cardiac imaging.

The progressive increase in numbers of noninvasive cardiac imaging examinations broadens the spectrum of knowledge radiologists are expected to acquire in the management of drugs during CT coronary angiography (CTCA) and cardiac MR (CMR) to improve image quality for optimal visualization and assessment of the coronary arteries and adequate MR functional analysis. Aim of this review is to provide an overview on different class of drugs (nitrate, beta-blockers, ivabradine, anxiolytic, adenosine, dobutamine, atropine, dipyridamole and regadenoson) that can be used in CTCA and CMR, illustrating their main indications, contraindications, efficacy, mechanism of action, metabolism, safety, side effects or complications, and providing advices in their use.

CCTA in the diagnosis of coronary artery disease.

The world of cardiac imaging is proposing to physicians an ever-increasing spectrum of options and tools with the disadvantages of patients presently submitted to multiple, sequential, time-consuming, and costly diagnostic procedures and tests, sometimes with contradicting results. In the last two decades, the CCTA has evolved into a valuable diagnostic test in today's patient care, changing the official existing guidelines and clinical practice with a pivotal role to exclude significant CAD, in the referral of patients to the Cath-Lab, in the follow-up after coronary revascularization, and finally in the cardiovascular risk stratification.

Multimodality imaging of COVID-19 pneumonia: from diagnosis to follow-up. A comprehensive review.

Due to its pandemic diffusion, SARS- CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2) infection represents a global threat. Despite a multiorgan involvement has been described, pneumonia is the most common manifestation of COVID-19 (Coronavirus disease 2019) and it is associated with a high morbidity and a considerable mortality. Especially in the areas with high disease burden, chest imaging plays a crucial role to speed up the diagnostic process and to aid the patient management. The purpose of this comprehensive review is to understand the diagnostic capabilities and limitations of chest X-ray (CXR) and high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) in defining the common imaging features of COVID-19 pneumonia and correlating them with the underlying pathogenic mechanisms. The evolution of lung abnormalities over time, the uncommon findings, the possible complications, and the main differential diagnosis occurring in the pandemic phase of SARS-CoV-2 infection are also discussed.

Coronary atherosclerosis in apparently healthy master athletes discovered during pre-PARTECIPATION screening. Role of coronary CT angiography (CCTA).

BACKGROUND: Pre-participation screening (PPS) of athletes aged over 35 years (master athletes, MA) is a major concern in Sports Cardiology. In this population, sports-related sudden cardiac death is rare but usually due to coronary atherosclerosis (CA). Coronary CT Angiography (CCTA) has changed the approach to diagnosis/management of CA, but its role in this context still needs to be assessed. METHODS AND RESULTS: We retrospectively examined 167 MA who underwent CCTA in our hospital since 2006, analyzing symptoms, stress-test ECG, cardiovascular risk profiles (SCORE) and CCTA findings. Among the whole enrolled population, 153 (91.6%) MA underwent CCTA for equivocal/positive stress-test ECG with/without symptoms, 13 (7.8%) just for clinical symptoms, 1 (0.6%) for the family history. The CCTA showed the presence of CA in 69 MA (41.3%), congenital coronary anomalies (anomalous origin or deep myocardial bridge) in 8 (4.8%), both in 7 (4.2%). A negative CCTA was observed in 83 MA (49.7%). The risk-SCORE (age, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, smoking) was a good indicator for the presence of moderate/severe CA on CCTA. However, mild/moderate CA was present in 17.8% of MA clinically stratified at a low risk-SCORE. CONCLUSION: While coronary angiography is more indicated in athletes with positive stress-test ECG and high clinical risk, the CCTA may be useful in the evaluation of MA with an abnormal stress test ECG and/or clinical symptoms engaged in competitive sports with a high cardiovascular involvement. Age, gender, presence of symptoms and clinical risk-SCORE assessment may help sports physicians and cardiologists to decide whether to request a CCTA or not.

Coronary Artery Aneurysms Presenting as Acute Coronary Syndrome: An Unusual Case of IgG4-Related Disease Vascular Involvement.

We report the case of a 65-year-old man referred to our department because of a complex coronary aneurysmal disease presenting as subacute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction due to intraluminal thromboembolism. The patient's past medical history (recurrent episodes of lymphadenopathies, parotid swelling, prostatitis, and dacryoadenitis) raised the suspicion of a unifying systemic disorder with coronary involvement. An extensive infectious and autoimmune screening was performed, leading to the final diagnosis of IgG4-related disease. Our case highlights the importance to include this rare and recently described disease in the diagnostic workup of acquired coronary aneurysms.

Cross-modality Accuracy of Dual-step, Prospectively Electrocardiography-triggered Dual-source Computed Tomorgaphy Compared With Same-day Echocardiography and Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Follow-up of Heart-transplant Patients.

PURPOSE: An accurate evaluation of left ventricular volumes, mass, and ejection fraction (EF) and an early exclusion or detection of significant coronary artery disease or cardiac allograft vasculopathy are mandatory for clinical management and prognosis assessment of heart-transplanted patients (HTP). The purpose of this article was to evaluate the role of dual-step prospective electrocardiography-triggered Dual-Source CT (pECGdual-step-DSCT) in HTP for the assessment of left-ventricular function, in comparison with echocardiography (echo) and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) performed on the same day, and of the coronary arteries as well. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Left-ventricular EF, end-diastolic volume, end-systolic volume, stroke volume, cardiac output (CO), and mass were assessed in 11 HTP by pECGdual-step-DSCT in comparison with CMR and echo performed on the same day. During all the examinations, the heart rate was recorded. CT coronary artery assessment was also performed. RESULTS: Heart rate was lower during DSCT (75.6±7.8 bpm; P<0.001). EF resulted slightly lower for DSCT (55.7%±5.0%; P≥0.05) in comparison with CMR (57.8%±5.3%; P≥0.05) and echo (59.2%±5.6%; P≥0.05). DSCT showed statistically significant higher end-diastolic volume (153.7±24.2 mL), end-systolic volume (67.8±11.5 mL), and stroke volume (85.9±17.6 mL) (P<0.01 up to 0.001) than CMR, but with a high correlation (P<0.001). Cardiac output was almost similar for DSCT versus CMR, with a very high correlation coefficient (r=0.914; P<0.001). DSCT showed higher mass values than CMR (P<0.001), but with a high correlation (r=0.866; P<0.001). DSCT versus echo results were less correlated. No significant coronary artery disease was detected. CONCLUSION: pECGdual-step-DSCT allows reliable assessment of left-ventricular function in HTP, with good agreement and correlation with CMR, within a global diagnostic approach including coronary artery evaluation in one single-volume acquisition.

Comparison of CT and MR angiography in evaluation of peripheral arterial disease before endovascular intervention.

BACKGROUND: Multidetector computed tomography angiography (MDCTA) and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) are accurate techniques for selecting patients with peripheral arterial disease for surgical and endovascular treatment. No studies in the literature have directly compared MDCTA and MRA to establish which one should be employed, in patients suitable for both techniques, before endovascular treatment. PURPOSE: To compare diagnostic performance of MDCTA vs MRA before endovascular intervention. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We prospectively compared MDCTA (64 slices scanner) and MRA (1.5 T scanner; 3D gadolinium-enhanced bolus-chase acquisition plus time resolved acquisition on calves) to stratify 35 patients according to the TASC II score and a runoff severity score. We also evaluated the accuracy of both techniques in each arterial segment. Selective angiography performed during the treatment was the standard of reference. RESULTS: MDCTA and MRA accurately classify disease in the aorto-iliac (accuracy 0.92 for MDCTA and MRA) and femoro-popliteal (MDCTA 0.94, MRA 0.90) segments. MDCTA was more accurate in stratifying disease in the infrapopliteal segments (0.96 vs. 0.9) and in assessing the impairment of runoff arteries (0.92 vs. 0.85) at per-segment analysis. MDCTA showed a higher confidence and a shorter examination time. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that MDCTA can be considered as a first-line investigation in patients being candidates for endovascular procedures when clinical history or duplex sonographic evaluation are indicative of severe impairment of the infrapopliteal segment.

MDCT assessment of CAD in type-2 diabetic subjects with diabetic neuropathy: the role of Charcot neuro-arthropathy.

OBJECTIVES: To compare the CACS and CAD severity assessed by MDCT in neuropathic type-2 diabetic patients with and without Charcot-neuroarthropathy (CN). METHODS: Thirty-four CN asymptomatic-patients and 36 asymptomatic-patients with diabetic-neuropathy (DN) without CN underwent MDCT to assess CACS and severity of CAD. Patients were classified as positive for significant CAD in presence of at least one stenosis >50 % on MDCT-coronary-angiography (MDCT-CA). Groups were matched for age, sex and traditional CAD risk-factors. The coronary-angiography (CA) was performed in all patients with at least a significant stenosis detected by MDCT-CA, both as reference and eventually as treatment. RESULTS: CN patients showed higher rates of significant CAD in comparison with DN subjects [p < 0.001], while non-significant differences were observed in CACS (p = 0.980). No significant differences were also observed in CACS distribution in all subjects for stenosis ≥/<50 % (p = 0.814), as well as in both groups (p = 0.661 and 0.559, respectively). The MDCT-CA showed an overall diagnostic-accuracy for significant CAD of 87%. CONCLUSIONS: These preliminary data suggest that CN-patients have a higher prevalence of severe CAD in comparison with DN-patients, while coronary plaques do not exhibit an increased amount of calcium. MDCT may be helpful to assess the CV risk in such asymptomatic type-2-diabetic patients with autonomic-neuropathy. KEY POINTS: Type 2-diabetic-patients with CN result having more severe coronary artery plaque-burden. MDCT-CA may stratify the CV risk in type 2-diabetic-patients with CN. Adequate diagnostic is mandatory for optimal management of type 2-diabetic-patients with CN.

Comprehensive CT cardiothoracic imaging: a new challenge for chest imaging.

In the past, thoracic and cardiac imaging were two distinct specialties of radiology. The technical evolution, however, has changed their boundaries with an important impact on CT imaging practices and has opened the new era of "cardiothoracic" imaging, due to the strong anatomic, mechanical, physiologic, physiopathologic, and therapeutic cardiopulmonary correlations. Modern thoracic radiologists can no longer avoid the assessment of heart and coronary arteries, as they used to do with earlier generations of CT scanner. The advent of ECG gating and state-of-art CT scanner faster rotation speed, high spatial and temporal resolution, high-pitch mode, shorter acquisition time, and dedicated cardiac reconstruction algorithms has opened new possibilities for chest imaging, integrating cardiac morphologic and even functional information within a diagnostic chest CT scan. The aim of this review is to briefly show and summarize the concept of integrated cardiothoracic imaging, which redefines the boundaries of chest CT imaging, opening the door to a new radiologic specialty.

MDCT coronary angiography -- postprocessing, reading, and reporting: last but not least.

Significant literature on MDCT coronary angiography (MDCT-CA) has emerged in the last decade concerning patient's selection, technical aspects of different generations of CT equipment, ECG gating, contrast material and beta-blockade administration, acquisition parameters, and radiation dose. However, the literature regarding postprocessing, reading, and reporting is not so extensive. This review highlights the main elements of MDCT-CA data analysis, thereby allowing the radiologist to take full advantage of this technology and enable a structured report to be generated, promoting best practice with high-quality results.

Cardiovascular CT angiography in neonates and children: image quality and potential for radiation dose reduction with iterative image reconstruction techniques.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate image quality (IQ) of low-radiation-dose paediatric cardiovascular CT angiography (CTA), comparing iterative reconstruction in image space (IRIS) and sinogram-affirmed iterative reconstruction (SAFIRE) with filtered back-projection (FBP) and estimate the potential for further dose reductions. METHODS: Forty neonates and children underwent low radiation CTA with or without ECG synchronisation. Data were reconstructed with FBP, IRIS and SAFIRE. For ECG-synchronised studies, half-dose image acquisitions were simulated. Signal noise was measured and IQ graded. Effective dose (ED) was estimated. RESULTS: Mean absolute and relative image noise with IRIS and full-dose SAFIRE was lower than with FBP (P < 0.001), while SNR and CNR were higher (P < 0.001). Image noise was also lower and SNR and CNR higher in half-dose SAFIRE studies compared with full-and half-dose FBP studies (P < 0.001). IQ scores were higher for IRIS, full-dose SAFIRE and half-dose SAFIRE than for full-dose FBP and higher for half-dose SAFIRE than for half-dose FBP (P < 0.05). Median weight-specific ED was 0.3 mSv without and 1.36 mSv with ECG synchronisation. The estimated ED of half-dose SAFIRE studies was 0.68 mSv. CONCLUSIONS: IR improves image noise, SNR, CNR and subjective IQ compared with FBP in low-radiation-dose paediatric CTA and allows further dose reductions without compromising diagnostic IQ. KEY POINTS: • Iterative reconstruction techniques significantly improve non-invasive cardiovascular CT in children. • Using half traditional radiation dose image quality is higher with iterative reconstruction. • Iterative reconstruction techniques may allow further radiation reductions in paediatric cardiovascular CT.

Coronary CT angiography: image quality, diagnostic accuracy, and potential for radiation dose reduction using a novel iterative image reconstruction technique-comparison with traditional filtered back projection.

OBJECTIVES: To compare image noise, image quality and diagnostic accuracy of coronary CT angiography (cCTA) using a novel iterative reconstruction algorithm versus traditional filtered back projection (FBP) and to estimate the potential for radiation dose savings. METHODS: Sixty five consecutive patients (48 men; 59.3 ± 7.7 years) prospectively underwent cCTA and coronary catheter angiography (CCA). Full radiation dose data, using all projections, were reconstructed with FBP. To simulate image acquisition at half the radiation dose, 50% of the projections were discarded from the raw data. The resulting half-dose data were reconstructed with sinogram-affirmed iterative reconstruction (SAFIRE). Full-dose FBP and half-dose iterative reconstructions were compared with regard to image noise and image quality, and their respective accuracy for stenosis detection was compared against CCA. RESULTS: Compared with full-dose FBP, half-dose iterative reconstructions showed significantly (p = 0.001 - p = 0.025) lower image noise and slightly higher image quality. Iterative reconstruction improved the accuracy of stenosis detection compared with FBP (per-patient: accuracy 96.9% vs. 93.8%, sensitivity 100% vs. 100%, specificity 94.6% vs. 89.2%, NPV 100% vs. 100%, PPV 93.3% vs. 87.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Iterative reconstruction significantly reduces image noise without loss of diagnostic information and holds the potential for substantial radiation dose reduction from cCTA.