Diagnostic Value of Prospective Electrocardiogram-triggered Dual-source Computed Tomography Angiography for Infants and Children with Interrupted Aortic Arch

Abstract

Background: Accurate assessment of intra- as well as extra-cardiac malformations and radiation dosage concerns are especially crucial to infants and children with interrupted aortic arch (IAA). The purpose of this study is to investigate the value of prospective electrocardiogram (ECG)-triggered dual-source computed tomography (DSCT) angiography with low-dosage techniques in the diagnosis of IAA. Methods: Thirteen patients with suspected IAA underwent prospective ECG-triggered DSCT scan and transthoracic echocardiography (TTE). Surgery was performed on all the patients. A five-point scale was used to assess image quality. The diagnostic accuracy of DSCT angiography and TTE was compared with the surgical findings as the reference standard. A nonparametric Chi-square test was used for comparative analysis. P 0.05), and that for extra-cardiac vascular malformations was 92.3% and 99.0% (P < 0.05), respectively. The mean score of image quality was 3.77 ± 0.83. The mean ED was 0.30 ± 0.04 mSv (range from 0.23 mSv to 0.39 mSv). Conclusions: In infants and children with IAA, prospective ECG-triggered DSCT with low radiation exposure and high diagnostic efficiency has higher accuracy compared to TTE in detection of extra-cardiac vascular anomalies.

Keywords

• Dual-source Computed Tomography; Image Quality; Interrupted Aortic Arch; Prospective ECG-triggered; Radiation Dose