Assessment of aortic atheromatous plaque and stiffness by 64-slice computed tomography is useful for identifying patients with coronary artery disease.

Background: With multislice computed tomography (MSCT) it is possible to visualize the coronary arteries, as well as the aorta, in a single computed tomography scan. Using MSCT, atherosis and sclerosis of the descending thoracic aorta (DTA) were quantified and differences between patients with and without coronary artery disease (CAD) were analyzed.
Methods and Results: The population comprised 89 patients who underwent ECG-gated MSCT: 40 patients with suspected CAD by MSCT underwent invasive coronary angiography, and had documented significant stenoses (CAD group), 49 patients did not have significant stenoses (control group). Twenty cross-sectional images of DTA were reconstructed every 5% (0-95%) of the RR interval, and the largest and smallest luminal areas were traced. Atheromatous score and stiffness beta of DTA were quantified; both were significantly higher in the CAD group than in the controls. Multivariate analysis revealed that the average atheromatous score was an independent factor associated with CAD (p<0.005).
Conclusion: This study demonstrates that atherosis and sclerosis of DTA are associated with CAD. In cases with image quality that is unsatisfactory for interpretation of coronary stenoses, additional assessment of atherosclerosis of the DTA will be useful for identifying patients with CAD.