Evaluation of Coronary Atherosclerosis in Patients with Coronary Artery Aneurysm With CAD-RADS Scoring System Using MDCT Angiography

Abstract

Aim: This article aims to investigate the degree and frequency of atherosclerosis using the “Coronary Artery Disease Reporting and Data System” (CAD-RADS) classification in patients who underwent coronary Multidetector Computed Tomography (MDCT) Angiography with a preliminary diagnosis of coronary artery disease and were found to have coronary artery aneurysm (CAA) and also to discuss the predisposing factors, prevalence, diagnostic criteria and complications in CAA with CT images.Material and Methods: We retrospectively evaluated the examinations of 3694 patients who underwent coronary MDCT angiography. We evaluated a total of 69 patients including 23 patients with CAA and 46 patients without CAA, in terms of atherosclerotic involvement using the CAD-RADS classification system and compared the findings.Results: CAA was most frequently found in the right coronary artery (RCA), followed by the left anterior descending artery (LAD), left circumflex (LCX), left main coronary artery (LMCA), and posterolateral branch (PLB). In patients with CAA, the most frequently atherosclerosis observed vessels were LAD, LCX, RCA, and LMCA, respectively, while LAD, RCA, LCX, LMCA, PLD, and PDA were detected in patients without an aneurysm. No atherosclerosis was detected in 5 patients (21.7 %) with CAA and 15 patients (32.6 %) without CAA (p>0.05). Conclusion: The number of atherosclerotic vessels and the degree of stenosis calculated using the CAD-RADS scoring in patients with CAA are similar to patients without an aneurysm. The fact that atherosclerosis is an important factor in the etiology of aneurysms may explain this situation.