Imaging pitfalls, normal anatomy, and anatomical variants that can simulate disease on cardiac imaging as demonstrated on multidetector computed tomography.

Abstract

Advances in computed tomography have led to continuous improvement in cardiac imaging. Dedicated postprocessing capabilities, faster scan times, and cardiac gating methods reveal details of normal cardiac anatomy and anatomic variants that can mimic pathologic conditions. This article will review normal cardiac anatomy and variants that can mimic disease. Radiologists should be familiar with normal cardiac anatomy and anatomic variants to avoid misinterpretation of normal findings for pathologic processes.