Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death among Australian men and women.
Recently the National Heart Foundation issued a position statement on calcium scoring, a diagnostic tool used to assess cardiovascular disease risk. The Foundation advises that coronary artery calcium (CAC) scoring can have a role in the reclassification of absolute cardiovascular risk for selected patients in Australia.
Coronary artery calcium scoring is a technique that measures the amount of calcium in the coronary arteries using ECG-gated non-contrast computed tomography (CT) scan of the heart. It is a quick, painless procedure and is the gold standard for predicting heart attacks in people over the age of 50.
There is growing evidence that CAC scoring can improve the predictive performance of traditional risk assessment models, and help reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.
With the latest CT technology at Noosa Radiology, we now have the ability to see crisp, clean video of the heart and coronary arteries. Your GP can request a CT scan of the heart and chest that will give you a measure of your heart health before any symptoms such as chest pain or shortness of breath occur. Consider it a one-stop heart check-up with an analysis of the coronary arteries, valves and myocardial mass.
Talk to your GP about a referral today.
