What is EBT?
Electron Beam Tomography (EBT) is a
method of scanning your heart to detect coronary calcification. It is
dramatically faster than conventional CT ("Cat") scanners used in other medical
offices claiming to offer scanning services for your heart. In fact, EBT is up
to TEN times faster . . . resulting in crystal clear "still" images of your
(always beating) heart, allowing trained Cardiologists a clearly superior
analysis tool.
Heart disease is the number one cause of death in America today. Tragically for
many Americans, the first, last, and only symptom of heart disease may be sudden
death. Finally, after years of research, physicians have an accurate and safe
diagnostic tool to detect heart disease - EBT. This state-of- the-art scanner
takes a "freeze-frame" image of the heart, which clearly detects and measures
calcium in the coronary arteries. Since the majority of plaques in coronary
arteries contain some calcium, the calcification of the arteries seen by EBT
usually indicates coronary artery disease.
EBT is painless, quick, accurate, and relatively inexpensive. There are no
special preparations necessary. You can eat and drink before and after the scan,
remain fully clothed, and there are no needles. The scan itself lasts only 30
seconds, while the entire procedure (from check-in to check-out) takes only 15
minutes.
Electron-beam computed tomography (EBCT) and the recent generation of
multi-slice computed tomography scanners (MSCT) permit high-resolution imaging
of the beating heart and the coronary arteries. The visualization of coronary
calcium offers the opportunity to non-invasively obtain direct information on
coronary anatomy and plaque burden. For clinical purposes, coronary calcium
represents the presence of arteriosclerotic plaques. Coronary calcium is
deposited in an actively regulated process related to lipid content of and
apoptosis within coronary plaques. The amount of coronary calcium is related to
the extent of coronary plaque disease, which has substantial diagnostic and
prognostic implications. Visualization of coronary calcium by cardiac CT allows
to non-invasively detect and localize coronary plaques and describe their
distribution in the coronary tree. Approximately 50% to 70% of all plaques are
calcified. Calcium cannot be used to reliably identify plaques at risk for
developing complications such as rupture or erosion with ensuing thrombus
formation. However, data are accumulating that indicate that calcium is an
indicator of coronary arteriosclerotic disease activity. A scan negative for
coronary calcium has a high negative predictive value indicating absence of
stenotic coronary artery disease and an excellent short- to mid-term prognosis1.
As an alternative to intra-coronary modalities, electron beam computed
tomography (EBCT) and multi-slice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) are able to
non-invasively image the coronary arteries. In addition to stenosis detection by
imaging the vessel lumen, MSCT has the ability to visualize the coronary artery
wall. By using computed tomography (CT), the various components of
atherosclerotic plaque may be distinguished and characterized, which holds the
promise of, eventually, identifying vulnerable plaque2.
1 Schmermund A, Mohlenkamp S, Erbel R., Coronary artery calcium and its relationship to coronary artery disease. Cardiol Clin. 2003 Nov;21(4):521-34.
2 Nieman K, van der Lugt A, Pattynama PM,
de Feyter PJ., Noninvasive visualization of atherosclerotic plaque with
electron beam and multi-slice spiral computed tomography.,
J Interv Cardiol.
2003 Apr;16(2):123-8.
Homocysteine
Cycles of Precession