According to a recent study, the high-speed advanced imaging CT technology can aid in diagnosis and prediction of 
patients at risk for heart attack and thus reduce death cases caused by it. The study was carried out at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI). The study was published online at the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
The Heart Institute is one of the major North American centers in diagnostic imaging, including cardiac CT. The cardiac CT is performed within seven to ten seconds, producing images of the entire heart and the blood vessels in three dimensions (3D). The high-resolution images can help in diagnosing plaques, which can cause closure of vessels, blocking the blood flow to the heart and a heart attack will be the result. Dr. Ben Chow, Co-Director of Cardiac Radiology, UOHI, said "This is the largest study conducted by a single centre using the advanced high-resolution 64-slice CT. Previous results on the value of CT for cardiac diagnosis are very limited but our research confirms the importance of this promising tool."
The Heart Institute uses a high-leveled 64-slice CT, installed back in 2006, and the first to be applied in Canada for cardiac healthcare. Every year, about 6,000 CT scans are carried out at UOHI. The high number of scans offered Dr. Chow and his research team the important database of patients to revise the causes of death and several other cardiac events, heart attack for example, after having a CT scan. Patients in a lot of cardiac centers are usually diagnosed using catheterization. The procedure includes introduction of a small catheter in the blood vessel to have an image that can show arterial blocks causing decreased blood flow to the heart. The procedure is carried out within 40 minutes and patients are staying in hospital, after catheterization, for about six hours. Moreover, some risks are accompanied with the procedure. Dr. Chow said "Our main goal is to provide our patients with the latest technology and reduce wait lists to the shortest possible time while being able to pinpoint strong indicators of coronary artery disease. If we can identify patients earlier and get them proper medical therapy, we expect this will reduce the likelihood of a heart attack or death. Our research demonstrates the importance of cardiac CT as a diagnostic tool,"
CT is considered a novel technique for cardiac medicine. It is used usually for imaging the brain and several other organs. Yet, cardiac CT offers high detailed picture of the cardiac tissues, such as images of calcified plaque as well as other types of mixed plaque formed inside the lining of the blood vessels. Until the 64-slice CT became available, the procedure was not applicable to the heart. Dr. Chow concludes "For many individuals, who suffer heart attack or sudden cardiac death, the cause is often due to non-descript plaque that rupture, block blood flow and cause a heart attack. The more plaque you have, the more likely you will suffer a cardiac event. CT allows us to see the plaque build-up and take appropriate action,"
