Imaging coronary arteries

In non-fatal cases, cardiovascular diseases are associated with a decreased quality of life as well as a substantial economic burden to society. Most sudden cardiac events are related to the complications of a non-stenosing marginal plaque. For this reason, the ability to properly identify the atherosclerotic plaque with rapid, non-invasive techniques is of utmost clinical interest in diagnostic workup and therapeutic planning of symptomatic patient. Nowadays CT produces high-quality images of the coronary arteries, in addition to defining their location and the extent of the atherosclerotic involvement. This new edition is enriched with two important additions. Firstly, dedicated chapters on intravascular ultrasound (IVUS), catheter angiography, and nuclear imaging have been included, with some discussions on theoretical techniques such as optical coherence tomography (OCT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Secondly, a completely new section comprising more than 70 clinical cases remarkably expands the horizons reached by the previous edition. This volume provides general practitioners and cardiologists with a basic understanding of the imaging techniques. For radiologists with no direct experience in cardiac imaging, the book serves as an important source of information on coronary pathophysiology and anatomy.