"Multislice spiral CT, combined with effective heart-rate
control, seems to provide an accurate noninvasive alternative to
conventional angiography, which is performed by threading a
catheter near the heart and injecting a dye directly into the
arteries around the heart," says lead author Koen Nieman, M.D.,
of the departments of cardiology and radiology at Erasmus
Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Some study
participants were given beta blockers to slow down their heart
rate, thus allowing the scanner to get better images of the
heart. "Because multisclice spiral tomography coronary
angiography is safer, requires no hospital admission and
involves less patient discomfort, it will become a very suitable
alternative in an increasing number of patients with chest pain
and suspected coronary heart disease. Earlier detection will
improve the treatment of these blockages and may prevent future
problems," he says. In the past decade, considerable progress
has been made in noninvasive imaging with MRI, el