Dr. Lisheng Xu
Prof. Tamer A.E Hassan
Section Collection Information
Dear Colleagues,
We are pleased to invite you to contribute to the section collection Imaging.
Cardiovascular imaging includes several types of tests that take pictures of human heart and surrounding structures. Healthcare providers use the tests to diagnose and manage heart conditions. Examples of cardiac imaging methods are chest X-ray, cardiac CT, cardiac MRI, nuclear cardiac stress testing and so on.
Noninvasive cardiac imaging refers to a combination of methods that can be used to obtain images related to the structure and function of the heart. As opposed to invasive techniques, which require catheters to be inserted into the heart, noninvasive tests are easier to perform, are safe, and can be used to detect various heart conditions, ranging from plaque in the arteries that supply the heart muscle (known as coronary artery disease) to abnormalities that impair the ability of the heart to pump blood.
As a result of technological advances, the number of available noninvasive cardiac tests that physicians can order has increased substantially over the last decade. Although these tests have improved physicians' abilities to diagnose and treat heart disease, it is important to understand that not all individuals benefit from noninvasive cardiac imaging. Therefore, these tests should be ordered only at the advice of a physician and should be considered only if the information provided would influence subsequent treatment with medications, procedures, or lifestyle interventions.
When Is Noninvasive Cardiac Imaging Used?
The goal of cardiac testing may include any of the following:
(1) to identify or exclude various forms of heart disease as a reason for a person's symptoms?
(2) to establish the risk of developing future heart disease such as a heart attack?
(3) to decide on the need for additional medical therapies and procedures. For instance, in patients with coronary artery disease, the results of imaging tests could be used for selecting between procedures such as placing stents in the arteries of the heart or performing bypass surgery versus pursuing aggressive treatment with medications.
We look forward to receiving your contributes.
Leading Section Editor:
Dr. Lisheng Xu
Support Section Editors:
Prof. Tamer A.E Hassan