Got chest pain? It’s easy to immediately assume that your heart is the cause, but chest pain can have many different causes, and not all heart-related pain is felt directly in the chest. Men and women can also experience heart attacks differently. When evaluating chest pain, a cardiac CT scan may sometimes be needed to help determine what is happening.
A Cardiac Computed Tomography (CT) Scan
A cardiac computed tomography (CT) scan uses multiple X-ray beams taken from different angles to create detailed 3D images of the heart, along with the surrounding blood vessels and structures.
This non-invasive procedure uses advanced CT technology, either with or without intravenous contrast dye. When used, the dye helps provide a clearer view of the heart and blood vessels. It allows New Jersey Cardiology Associates (NJCA) to examine detailed 3D images of your moving heart.
The scan can show the coronary arteries, heart chambers, heart muscle, heart valves, pulmonary veins, thoracic aorta, and the sac surrounding the heart, known as the pericardium.
Finding the Cause of Your Chest Pain
A cardiac CT scan is one tool your doctor may use to help identify the cause or causes of your chest pain. The scan can take about 10 minutes and may provide more detailed information than some other imaging tests.
New Jersey Cardiology Associates (NJCA) may use the scan to look for:
- Calcium or plaque buildup, narrowing, or blockages in the arteries
- Problems with the aorta, including aneurysms or dissection, which is a life-threatening tear in the inner layer of the aorta
- Possible reasons for shortness of breath or chest pain
- How well your heart valves are functioning
- Information needed to plan transcatheter valve procedures
- Information needed to plan arrhythmia ablation procedures or evaluate complications from a previous procedure
- Fluid or calcification in the sac surrounding your heart
Your doctor may also look for masses near the heart and congenital heart problems.
Depending on what the images reveal, your physician may recommend lifestyle changes, medications, treatments, or procedures to help address the cause of your chest pain.
Contact board certified cardiologists in our office in Belleville, NJ if you have additional questions about cardiac computed tomography scans or the evaluation of chest pain.