[What factors affected image quality in coronary multidetector-row computed tomography?]

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular imaging
• Medical diagnostics
• Radiology

Background:

• Coronary MDCT quality is often compromised by arrhythmia or poor breath-holding.
• However, suboptimal image quality can occur even in cooperative patients without these issues.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify factors influencing coronary MDCT image quality beyond arrhythmia and incomplete breath-holding.
• To investigate the impact of heart rate, temporal resolution, and other parameters on image acquisition.

Main Methods:

• Coronary MDCT and echocardiography were performed on 1591 patients after excluding those with arrhythmia or incomplete breath-holds.
• Patients were divided into mid-diastolic (MD) and end-systolic (ES) phase reconstruction groups.
• Image quality was assessed, and factors including heart rate (HR), temporal resolution (TR), and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) were analyzed.

Main Results:

• The MD group (N=1377) showed significantly higher image quality (2.9±0.3) than the ES group (N=214) (2.3±0.7).
• Lower mean heart rate (57±6 bpm) was observed in the MD group compared to the ES group (81±15 bpm).
• In the MD group, HR and TR affected image quality. In the ES group, TR and HR were significant, with LVEF becoming important in patients with HR ≥90 bpm.

Conclusions:

• Low heart rate is crucial for high-quality coronary MDCT in the mid-diastolic phase reconstruction.
• For end-systolic phase reconstruction, short TR and low HR are important for HR <90 bpm.
• In end-systolic phase reconstruction with HR ≥90 bpm, TR and LVEF are more critical than HR for image quality.