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Updated: Sep 12, 2025

Author Spotlight: Advancing Cardiovascular Imaging - Introducing the Spatially Weighted Calcium Score for Early Disease Detection
Published on: September 22, 2023
Artificial-intelligence-assisted CCTA quantifies sex differences in coronary atherosclerotic burden at low atheroma
Zoee D'Costa1, Ronald P Karlsberg1,2,3, Geoffrey W Cho1,3
1David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California Los Angeles, United States.
Background:
Coronary artery disease (CAD) manifests differently between sexes, with data suggesting females develop more non-calcified plaques that traditional calcium-centric tools may not detect.
Methods:
We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 100 individuals with low total atheroma volume (TAV) < 250 mm3 using artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) to assess sex-based differences in coronary plaque composition. Plaque subtypes included calcified, non-calcified, and low-density non-calcified atheroma volumes.
Results:
Females had significantly lower total (p = 0.018) and non-calcified plaque (p < 0.001) burden compared to males. Calcified (p = 0.52) and low-density non-calcified (p = 0.16) plaque volumes did not differ significantly. Age was a consistent predictor of plaque volume across most subtypes.
Conclusions:
Despite low overall plaque burden, males demonstrated a higher non-calcified plaque burden than females. This finding contrasts with previous literature and underscores the potential of AI-enabled CCTA to detect subclinical coronary disease, particularly in low-risk cohorts. These results support the use of comprehensive plaque profiling in both sexes to improve early risk stratification.
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