Cardiac Calcification

There is a spectrum of different types of cardiac"ncalcifications with the importance and significance"nof each type of cardiac calcification, especially"ncoronary artery calcification. Radiologic detection of"ncalcifications within the heart is quite common. The"namount of coronary artery calcification correlates"nwith the severity of coronary artery disease (CAD)."nCalcification of the aortic or mitral valve may indicate"nhemodynamically significant valvular stenosis."nMyocardial calcification is a sign of prior infarction,"nwhile pericardial calcification is strongly associated"nwith constrictive pericarditis. A spectrum of different"ntypes of cardiac calcifications (linear, annular,"ncurvilinear,...) could be seen in chest radiography and"nother imaging modalities. So a carful inspection for"ndetection and reorganization of these calcifications"nshould be necessary. Numerous modalities exist for"nidentifying coronary calcification, including plain"nradiography, fluoroscopy, intravascular ultrasound,"nMRI, echocardiography, and conventional, helical and"nelectron-beam CT (EBCT). Coronary calcifications"ndetected on EBCT or helical CT can be quantifie,"nand a total calcification score (Cardiac Calcification"nScoring) may be calculated. In an asymptomatic"npopulation and/or patients with concomitant risk"nfactors like diabetes mellitus, determination of the"npresence of coronary calcifications identifies the"npatients at risk for future myocardial infarction and"ncoronary artery disease. In patients without coronary"ncalcifications, future cardiovascular events could"nbe excluded. Therefore, detecting and recognizing"ncalcification related to the heart on chest radiography"nand other imaging modalities such as fluoroscopy, CT"nand echocardiography may have important clinical"nimplications.