Low-Dose Radiation Advances in Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography in the Diagnosis of Coronary Artery Disease.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review of imaging techniques and technology guidelines without quantitative synthesis
PubMed 30806322 · doi:10.2174/1573403X15666190222163737
What was done
The authors conducted a literature search across PubMed, Medline, EMBASE, and Google Scholar to review feasibility studies, clinical trials, and technology guidelines regarding hardware and reconstruction software advances for radiation dose reduction in coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA).
What was found
The abstract reports no aggregate numerical outcomes or study counts. It notes that sub-millisievert radiation doses have been achieved in CCTA by combining strategies such as prospective electrocardiogram-gating, high-pitch helical acquisition, tube current modulation, tube voltage reduction, heart rate reduction, and adaptive iterative reconstruction algorithms without compromising diagnostic image quality.
Why it matters
Achieving sub-millisievert radiation doses reduces potential ionizing radiation risks, supporting CCTA as a safer non-invasive diagnostic alternative to invasive coronary catheterization.
Limits
The abstract provides no quantitative data, sample sizes, or error ranges. As a narrative review, it omits systematic screening criteria, risk-of-bias evaluations, and specific measures used to define adequate image quality across different patient populations.
Cited by
- supports Coronary CT angiograms exposed patients to around 20 millisieverts of radiation 20 years ago, whereas modern CTAs deliver less than 1 millisievert.