Use of coronary artery calcium scanning to screen for coronary atherosclerosis among early middle-age adults

摘要

Coronary atherosclerosis is a highly prevalent and progressive disorder that is characterized by a long latent phase before the onset of clinical symptoms. Fatty streaks are commonly found in the vascular walls of children and progress with high frequency to significant fibrous plaques by early adulthood (1,2). Some of these evolve to become susceptible to hemorrhage, rupture, and thrombosis, with resultant acute coronary events. Because these events frequently occur without premonitory symptoms, the need to initiate management and prevention of coronary artery disease (CAD) well before the development of clinically manifest heart disease is now well accepted.