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Updated: Aug 4, 2025

In Vivo Quantitative Assessment of Myocardial Structure, Function, Perfusion and Viability Using Cardiac Micro-computed Tomography
Published on: February 16, 2016
Clinical Value of Positron Emission Tomography Myocardial Perfusion Imaging and Blood Flow Quantification
1Cardiovascular Imaging Program, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Cardiovascular Imaging Program, Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Cardiovascular Division, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Abstract:
Myocardial blood flow (MBF) and flow reserve (MFR) measurements by PET/computed tomography provide incremental diagnostic and prognostic information over traditional quantification of ischemia and scar by myocardial perfusion imaging. A normal stress MBF and MFR (>2.0) have a very high negative predictive value for excluding high-risk obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). These flow measurements are also used for surveillance of coronary allograft vasculopathy after heart transplantation. A global normal MFR (>2.0) identifies patients at lower clinical risk, whereas a severely reduced MFR (<1.5) identifies patients at high risk for adverse events, even among patients without regional perfusion abnormalities.
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