Risk Factors

Indications of possible heart disease

There are a number of risk factors of coronary artery disease. Some of these factors include :

• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• High Cholesterol
• Family history of heart disease
• History of smoking
• Overweight
• Stressful lifestyle
• Sedentary lifestyle

“The state-of -the-art technology, now available with the 64 slice cardiac CT scanner, will dramatically alter the way we currently treat patients with suspected coronary disease. By scanning for blocked arteries, we can sort out who is and is not at high risk of having heart disease and eliminate the need for unnecessary cardiac catheterization”.
Andy Rosenson, MD, Director of Radiology, HeartScan of Chicago

Calcium Scoring vs Cardiac CT Scan

Other companies may advertise that they provide a coronary artery scan, but what they actually provide is a cardiac calcium scoring.

You need to know that a cardiac calcium score is not enough.

Cardiac calcium scoring is not recommended very often by doctors because a physical examination and other tests can give information about your heart. Experts have not found that cardiac calcium scoring adds more information than these other tests.

Facts about Calcium Scoring :

What to Think About

• Plaque that is not hard ( soft plaque ) cannot be found with cardiac calcium scoring. Soft plaque is the earliest form of calcium buildup in the arteries of the heart. If you have soft plaque in your arteries, the test may look normal but this is a false-negative result. Soft plaque can also cause a heart attack. 
• Cardiac calcium scoring is not done very often because a physical examination and other tests can give information about your heart. This test may be recommended for men age 45 and older and women age 55 and older who have a higher chance of heart disease. Younger adults may be tested if they have a very strong family history of heart disease.
• If your cardiac calcium scoring shows that you have a high chance of having heart disease, you can take steps to lower your chance. Eat better, quit smoking, and get more exercise. These are the same steps your doctor would recommend after looking at your health history, your physical health, and any lab tests, such as a cholesterol test. If you have high blood pressure or high cholesterol, talk to your health professional about your treatment choices. 
• If you have an irregular heartbeat ( arrhythmia ) or a heart rate higher than 90 beats per minute, you may need to take a drug before this test to slow your heart rate.
• It is possible to have a false-positive test. This means that the test may show a high chance of blockage in the arteries of the heart when it is not true. People with a low chance of heart disease are most likely to have a false-positive test.
• Cardiac calcium scoring may not be covered by all health insurance plans.
• Cardia calcium scoring may not be available in some areas of the United States, such as in small towns.

Source : webmd