X-ray-based imaging approaches have greatly improved the diagnosis of heart disease, but they can generate considerable levels of radiation exposure. New imaging methods, however, offer the possibility of much safer external imaging for conditions that previously required potentially dangerous probes within the body (such as wires or tubes within blood vessels).

One example is high-definition computed tomography (CT) scans to visualize the arteries of the heart and diagnose coronary artery disease. However, such procedures have required radiation levels that could themselves be potentially dangerous. Dr. Bobak Heydari, from Brigham and Women’s Hospital (Boston, MA, USA) and colleagues has published an article in the September 2011 issue of the Canadian Journal of Cardiology (CJC) on the safety of cardiac imaging modalities. It is the first report of high-definition CT scans with the simultaneous application of several techniques to reduce the level of radiation to much safer values.

In an accompanying editorial in the same issue of CJC Paul Galiwango, MD, from Rouge Valley Health System (Toronto, ON, Canada) commented that although the study has limitations, the results demonstrate that reduction techniques are feasible and should be adopted whenever possible. They offer the challenge, “Do we need to go even lower?”

“Previous studies have shown that radiation exposure during cardiac diagnostic tests can increase cancer risk. This paper reports how various new methods can be applied to reduce radiation exposure during cardiac diagnostic tests by about 75%-85%. The procedures they describe can greatly reduce patient risk,” noted Stanley Nattel, MD, editor-in-chief of CJC.

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