SAN FRANCISCO—Giving statins to acute coronary syndrome patients before administering contrast agents for imaging prior to coronary procedures significantly lowered the rate of contrast-induced acute kidney injury, according to late-breaking trial results unveiled March 10 at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) scientific session.

SAN FRANCISCO—Is there a better way to measure fractional flow reserve (FFR), Bon-Kwon Koo, MD, of Seoul National University queried a crowded room March 9 during an educational session at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) scientific session.

Two separate studies edged delayed-enhancement cardiovascular MRI toward the clinical equivalent of home plate, but neither scored a run. The studies and an accompanying editorial were published March 6 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Coronary CT angiography (CCTA) made a splash in the mid-2000s with cardiologists and radiologists when it was shown to effectively detect coronary stenosis.

Cardiac imaging equipment doesn’t always pay for itself anymore. What should providers do about that aging suite?

Almost one-third of stress echocardiograms are ordered for inappropriate indications and this proportion persisted over time despite interventions directed toward referring physicians, according to a recent analysis. It also found only a fair correlation between radiology benefits managers and appropriate use criteria (AUC) for stress echocardiography.

Cardiovascular imagers need to be proactive and involved if they want to maintain relevance in tomorrow’s healthcare systems. So advise imaging thought leaders Pamela S. Douglas, MD, and Michael H. Picard, MD.

Perfusion CT adds clinically relevant information for evaluating patients with suspected acute ischemic stroke, according to a study published online Feb. 12 in Stroke.