subject: Why Ct Scans Are So Prominent [print this page] A heart stop is the first sign of heart disease for hundreds of thousands of Americans. A cardiologist in Los Angeles may constantly search for better ways to detect the problems sooner. In a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, a test along with CT scan is believed to lead to the root cause of intermediate risk of heart problems. The test, CAC (coronary artery calcium) score may evaluate the amount of calcium in blood vessels around the heart. Doctors may accomplish it through a CT scan of the chest. Doctors may use Framingham score to tell patients whether they are at high, low or intermediate risk of developing heart disease. It is a tool that may look at age, cholesterol, blood pressure, smoking history and gender.
A high-risk patient may likely be treated more aggressively with blood pressure and cholesterol medications than those with low-risk. Though not in use currently, CAC may help guide treatment for these millions of patients. It may provide additional support to be used as a tool for refining cardiovascular risk prediction in individuals with intermediate risk. The coronary artery calcium score may accurately reclassify 25% of individuals from intermediate to high risk, and another 40% to low risk. This means more than half of the people who have been labeled as having intermediate risk may now be considered to be at either high or low risk that may ideally lead to more appropriate care.
Heart disease still remains the leading cause of deaths worldwide. According to the American Heart Association, blockage of the arteries of the heart or coronary heart disease may lead to heart attacks. However, other factors that the test entails may include out-of-pocket expenses and an increased exposure to radiation. The test may be worth the cost and small radiation risk only if it is going to change a clinical decision regarding the use of aspirin, blood pressure medications or cholesterol treatment. However, a patient at an intermediate risk who has additional risk factors such as a strong family history of heart disease may be advised against going for the test.Physicians who are subsumed into hospital systems may get paid for services at the systems' rates that may be more generous procedures than what insurers pay independent doctors. Services such as imaging scans may now be billed as hospital outpatient that may double the cost.
