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Comparison of artery-based methods for ordinal grading of coronary artery calcium on low-dose chest computed tomography.
- Source :
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European Radiology . Nov2021, Vol. 31 Issue 11, p8108-8115. 8p. 1 Color Photograph, 2 Black and White Photographs, 3 Charts. - Publication Year :
- 2021
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Abstract
- Objectives: To identify the optimal artery-based method for ordinal grading of coronary artery calcium (CAC) on non-electrocardiogram (ECG)-gated low-dose chest computed tomography (LDCT) among three methods. Methods: A total of 120 asymptomatic subjects who underwent both LDCT and ECG-gated calcium scoring CT on the same day were retrospectively enrolled. Three cardiothoracic radiologists independently assessed CAC severity on LDCT (1.25-mm and 2.5-mm slice thickness) and classified it into four categories (none, mild, moderate, or severe) using three artery-based ordinal scoring methods (extent-based scoring, Weston scoring, and length-based scoring). Inter- and intra-observer CAC severity agreements of each method were assessed by Fleiss kappa statistics. Agreements between each method and ECG-gated calcium scoring CT were assessed by weighted kappa statistics. Results: The inter-observer agreement was highest with length-based method for both 1.25-mm (Fleiss kappa 0.735 for extent-based method, 0.801 for Weston score, and 0.813 for length-based method) and 2.5-mm slice thickness evaluation (Fleiss kappa 0.755 for extent-based method, 0.776 for Weston score, and 0.833 for extent-based method). Agreement across the three grading methods for the same observer was poor to moderate on 1.25-mm (Fleiss kappa 0.379–0.441) and moderate on 2.5-mm thickness evaluation (Fleiss kappa 0.427–0.461). Agreement of CAC severity between each method and ECG-gated calcium scoring CT was highest with the length-based method for all three observers on both 1.25-mm (weighted kappa 0.773–0.786) and 2.5-mm (weighted kappa 0.794–0.825) LDCT images. Conclusion: Among the three artery-based ordinal grading methods, the length-based method appears to be the most reliable for evaluating CAC on non-ECG-gated LDCT. Key Points: • The length-based method showed the highest inter-observer agreement and the highest agreement with the ECG-gated calcium scoring CT, compared with the extent-based method and the Weston score. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *CORONARY artery calcification
*TOMOGRAPHY
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 09387994
- Volume :
- 31
- Issue :
- 11
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- European Radiology
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 153081083
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-021-07987-7