Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Department of Cardiology, Bellvitge University Hospital and Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), 19th Floor, Feixa Llarga s/n, 08907 L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain.
Curr Cardiol Rep. 2018 Jul 10;20(9):70. doi: 10.1007/s11886-018-1020-9.
To discuss the classic analogy of "coronary artery calcium (CAC) as a mammogram of the heart", by evaluating the conceptual strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of a potential cardiovascular disease (CVD) screening strategy using CAC in apparently healthy adults.
CAC is typically used for further CVD risk assessment. CAC is also currently being used as a screening test in specific subgroups of individuals, particularly in some Asian countries. Although this has yielded valuable insights on the determinants and pathophysiology of CVD, whether this approach results in improved clinical outcomes compared to other assessment and management approaches is currently unclear. Although CAC and mammograms share a number of characteristics, there are also important conceptual differences. The evidence supporting CAC, which is a robust CVD risk assessment tool, for CVD screening purposes is currently very limited, and further research is needed.
通过评估使用 CAC 对看似健康的成年人进行潜在心血管疾病 (CVD) 筛查策略的概念优势、劣势、机会和威胁，讨论“冠状动脉钙 (CAC) 是心脏的乳房 X 光片”这一经典类比。
CAC 通常用于进一步的 CVD 风险评估。CAC 目前也正在某些特定人群的亚组中作为筛查试验使用，特别是在一些亚洲国家。虽然这为 CVD 的决定因素和病理生理学提供了有价值的见解，但与其他评估和管理方法相比，这种方法是否能带来更好的临床结果目前尚不清楚。尽管 CAC 和乳房 X 光片有一些共同的特征，但也存在重要的概念差异。目前，支持 CAC 作为 CVD 筛查目的的稳健 CVD 风险评估工具的证据非常有限，需要进一步研究。
