Abstract
Objectives:
The objective of this study was to examine the findings of CT angiography in patients with aortic arch anomalies and comparison with echocardiography findings in patients referred to a private imaging center in Tehran during 20082011.Patients and Methods:
The cases included 203 patients with clinical symptoms or echocardiograms of congenital heart disease who were referred to Tooska Imaging Center to assess the presence of aortic arch anomalies. This study was a retrospective study of CT angiography and chest echocardiography findings of patients with aortic arch anomalies.Results:
In this study, 203 patients with congenital anomalies were enrolled. Among those, 107 patients were men (96 female). The most common anomaly of the aortic arch was coarctation (19.7%) and Right sided arch with mirror image branching (19.2%). The most common cardiac anomalies associated with aortic arch anomalies were VSD, PA, and PDA. The sensitivity and specificity of echocardiography compared to CT angiography in the diagnosis of aortic arch anomalies was 59% and 100% respectively. Agreement between the two methods (kappa) in the diagnosis of aortic arch anomalies was 0.72.Conclusions:
Although echocardiography is the first diagnostic method for patients with congenital heart disease, in some patients, the ability of this method in detection of coronary artery anomalies and thoracic vessels was limited. As a result, CT is used in morphologic evaluation of congenital heart disease (CHD) and its high temporal and spatial resolution is essential for proper evaluation. MDCT is a useful alternative in depiction of aortic arch disorders, determining anatomic landmarks as well as delineating of associated cardiovascular anomalies.Full Text
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