Copyright
©2014 Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Radiol. May 28, 2014; 6(5): 148-159
Published online May 28, 2014. doi: 10.4329/wjr.v6.i5.148
Published online May 28, 2014. doi: 10.4329/wjr.v6.i5.148
Coronary plaque imaging by coronary computed tomography angiography
Akira Sato, Cardiovascular Division, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8577, Japan
Author contributions: Sato A analyzed the data and wrote the paper.
Correspondence to: Akira Sato, MD, Cardiovascular Division, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8577, Japan. asato@md.tsukuba.ac.jp
Telephone: +81-29-8533143 Fax: +81-29-8533143
Received: December 27, 2013
Revised: February 9, 2014
Accepted: April 17, 2014
Published online: May 28, 2014
Revised: February 9, 2014
Accepted: April 17, 2014
Published online: May 28, 2014
Core Tip
Core tip: With the development of technical aspects of coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA), clinical practice and research are increasingly shifting toward defining the clinical implication of plaque morphology and patients outcomes by coronary CTA. In this review we discuss the coronary plaque morphology estimated by CTA beyond coronary angiography including the comparison to the currently available other imaging modalities used to examine morphological characteristics of the atherosclerotic plaque. We hope that an integrated, multi-modality imaging approach will become the gold standard for noninvasive evaluation of coronary plaque morphology and outcome data in clinical practice.