Word: ebct
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...then build up in the vessels and stiffen them, laying the foundation for heart disease. Getting one's calcium score is as simple as getting a quick injection of a contrast agent in the arm and a zap from an ultrafast X ray, either by electron beam computed tomography (EBCT) or by multidetector CT. Studies show that in every age group people with higher calcium levels have a greater risk of heart attack than do people of the same age with lower scores...
That's why there has been so much attention given lately to a noninvasive test called electron beam computed tomography (EBCT). It uses a burst of X rays to show how much calcium has been deposited in the coronary arteries--a good measure of how much plaque has accumulated there. In a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, more than half of 1,119 patients who passed their stress tests had high calcium scores in subsequent EBCTs, suggesting significant hardening of the arteries...
...EBCT is not the end of the story. If you get a high calcium count, you will still need an angiogram so your doctor can tell precisely where your arteries are blocked. But EBCTs are spotting a lot of hidden heart disease. Although some insurance companies are reluctant to pay for this new test, its use is growing rapidly, and it may eventually become part of the standard heart work...
Until now. It turns out that excess deposits of calcium in the lining of the arteries, which can be measured using electron-beam computed tomography (EBCT), are a good indication that potentially dangerous fatty plaques exist. The correlation is strong enough that the American Heart Association is weighing a recommendation of EBCT screening for healthy adults who have a greater than average risk of heart disease, including smokers and those with a strong family history. As an added benefit, patients can take home their EBCT image, complete with gummed-up arteries, and use it as a reminder to stick with...
Although it is not yet clear whether calcium deposits spotted by EBCT can accurately predict who will go on to have a heart attack, at the very least it's one more test that cardiologists can use to decide how aggressively to treat a patient who is at risk...