MSCT对肺动脉栓塞的诊断价值

目的：分析多层螺旋CT(multishce spiral CT，MSCT)对肺动脉栓塞的肺血管分布及肺内改变的诊断价值。方法：回顾分析12例肺动脉栓塞患者的增强MSCT图像。将受累肺动脉分为中央型、周围型、混合型；肺叶水平动脉内充盈缺损分为完全型、部分充缺，并观察对比相应区域肺内改变。结果：肺动脉栓塞周围型2例，混合型10例；受累肺叶动脉25支，9支完全充盈缺损，16支部分充缺。随就诊检查时间的延长，部分充缺的比例有所增大。12例中肺内出现实变3例，出现频率为25％，其中1例诊断为肺炎，胸腔积液4例。结论：MSCT可以明确诊断肺动脉栓塞，多平面重建有助于其确诊。肺动脉栓塞的肺内改变发生率不高且无特异性，要以观察到栓塞的肺血管分布区一致为依据．肺内阴影的定性应结合临床及追随观察。     

Suspected pulmonary embolism and deep venous thrombosis: A comprehensive MDCT diagnosis in the acute clinical setting

Both pulmonary arterial and peripheral venous sides of venous thromboembolism (VTE) can now be efficiently and safely investigated by multi-detector CT (MDCT) at the same time by a combined CT angiography/CT venography protocol. In the emergency setting, the use of such a single test for patients suspected of suffering from VTE on a clinical grounds may considerably shorten and simplify diagnostic algorithms. The selection of patients to be submitted to MDCT must follow well-established clinical prediction rules in order to avoid generalized referral to CT on a generic clinical suspicion basis and excessive population exposure to increased ionizing radiation dose, especially in young patients. Clinical and anatomical wide-panoramic capabilities of MDCT allow identification of underlying disease that may explain patients' symptoms in a large number of cases in which VTE is not manifest. The analysis of MDCT additional findings on cardiopulmonary status and total thrombus burden can lead to better prognostic stratification of patients and influence therapeutic options. Some controversial points such as optimal examination parameters, clinical significance of subsegmentary emboli, CT pitfalls and/or possible falsely positive diagnoses, and outcome of untreated patients in which VTE has been excluded by MDCT without additional testing, must of course be taken into careful consideration before the definite role of comprehensive MDCT VTE "one-stop-shop" diagnosis in everyday clinical practice can be ascertained.     

Prospectively ECG gated CT pulmonary angiography versus helical ungated CT pulmonary angiography: impact on cardiac related motion artifacts and patient radiation dose

Objective

To compare prospectively ECG gated CT pulmonary angiography (CTPA) with routine helical ungated CTPA for cardiac related motion artifacts and patient radiation dose.

Subjects and methods

Twenty patients with signs and symptoms suspicious for pulmonary embolism and who had a heart rate below 85 were scanned with prospectively ECG gated CTPA. These gated exams were matched for several clinical parameters to exams from twenty similar clinical patients scanned with routine ungated helical CTPA. Three blinded independent reviewers subjectively evaluated all exams for overall pulmonary artery enhancement and for several cardiac motion related artifacts, including vessel blurring, intravascular shading, and double line. Reviewers also measured pulmonary artery intravascular density and image noise. Patient radiation dose for each technique was compared. Fourteen clinical prospectively ECG gated CTPA exams from a second institution were evaluated for the same parameters.

Results

Prospectively ECG gated CTPA resulted in significantly decreased motion-related image artifact scores in lung segments adjacent to the heart compared to ungated CTPA. Measured image noise was not significantly different between the two types of CTPA exams. Effective dose was 28% less for prospectively ECG gated CTPA (4.9 mSv versus 6.8 mSv, p = 0.02). Similar results were found in the prospectively ECG gated exams from the second institution.

Conclusion

Compared to routine helical ungated CTPA, prospectively ECG gated CTPA may result in less cardiac related motion artifact in lung segments adjacent to the heart and significantly less patient radiation dose.     

Imaging of acute pulmonary embolism using multi-detector CT angiography: An update on imaging technique and interpretation

Computed tomography angiography (CTA) of the pulmonary arteries has become the main diagnostic test for the evaluation of pulmonary embolism (PE). Not only due to the good availability, low cost and minimal invasiveness of this technique, but mainly because of the introduction of multi-detector CT techniques resulting in significant improvement in resolution, speed and image quality. This continuous gain in image acquisition speed went along with the introduction of new techniques of image acquisition, such as the dual-source CT scanning and novel concepts of image interpretation beyond morphological findings including the definition of the resulting perfusion defects and assessment of the cardiopulmonary circulation as a functional unit.This article will focus on technical and practical aspects to optimize CTPA examinations with modern multi-detector CT scanners, discusses aspects to be considered in specific patient groups (e.g., during pregnancy, young patients) and outlines new advents such as dual-source lung perfusion and automatic detection of pulmonary emboli.     

多层螺旋CT在肺动脉栓塞诊断中的应用价值

目的 研究多层螺旋CT在肺动脉栓塞诊断中的临床应用，着重研究亚段肺动脉栓塞的诊断价值。方法 共34例，下肢深静脉血栓16例，近期大手术史11例，肺癌1例，不明原因6例。34例均使用GE Light Speed Plus多层螺旋CT(MSCT)行平扫及造影增强扫描，1次采集4层图像。结果 分析34例共1824支肺动脉分支，其中507支肺动脉分支显示了栓塞，占27．8％。在680支肺段动脉中，246支显示了栓塞，占36．2％；而亚段肺动脉1041支中，141支显示了栓塞，占13．5％。平扫肺动脉栓塞的间接征象为肺纹理稀少19例，肺动脉高压2例，胸水16例，胸膜下梗死灶共41个，梗死灶多发11例，单发12例，双肺6例。1例慢性栓塞栓子钙化，极为少见。造影增强后肺动脉栓塞的直接征象为不同程度的肺动脉分支充盈缺损。充盈缺损有4种表现形式：中心型57支，偏心型160支，附壁血栓131支，完全阻塞型159支。结论 多层螺旋CT肺动脉造影是诊断肺动脉栓塞的快速、有效、无创伤的诊断方法，尤其对亚段肺动脉栓塞是一种先进的方法，可以代替肺动脉造影，可与电子束CT媲美，可能成为诊断肺动脉栓塞的首选方法。     

CTPA for the diagnosis of acute pulmonary embolism during pregnancy

CT pulmonary angiography (CTPA) has been suggested by the Fleischner society as the first test following a negative leg ultrasound in pregnant patients with suspected pulmonary embolism. This editorial discusses the use of CTPA as a diagnostic tool in pregnant women and comments on the need for specifically adapting CT protocols during pregnancy in the light of new research describing a substantial number of non-diagnostic examinations in pregnant women if routine scanning protocols are used for CTA of the pulmonary arteries. Potential reasons for these high numbers of insufficient examinations are physiological changes occurring during pregnancy that lead to a hyperdynamic circulation, which reduces average enhancement of the pulmonary vasculature. In addition, there are possible breathing-related effects that include an increased risk for Valsalva manoeuvre with devastating effects for pulmonary vascular enhancement. Techniques to overcome these problems are discussed: bolus triggering with short start delays, high flow rates or high contrast medium concentration, preferential use of fast CT systems and the use of low kVp CT techniques. CT data acquisition during deep inspiration should be avoided and shallow respiration may be considered as an alternative to suspended breathing in this patient group. All these factors can contribute to optimization of the quality of pulmonary CTA in pregnant patients. It is time now to adapt our protocols and provide optimum care for this sensitive patient group.     

Severity of acute pulmonary embolism: evaluation of a new spiral CT angiographic score in correlation with echocardiographic data

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the severity of acute pulmonary embolism (PE) could be quantitatively assessed with spiral CT angiography (SCTA). Thirty-six consecutive patients without underlying cardiopulmonary disease and high clinical suspicion of PE underwent prospectively thin-collimation SCTA and echocardiography at the time of the initial diagnosis (T0) and after initial therapy (T1; mean interval of time T1–T2: 32 days). The CT severity score was based on the percentage of obstructed surface of each central and peripheral pulmonary arterial section using a 5-point scale (1: <25%; 2: 25–49%; 3: 50–74%; 4: 75–99%; 5: 100%). The sum of the detailed scores attributed to 5 mediastinal, 6 lobar and 20 segmental arteries per patient led to the determination of central, peripheral and global CT severity scores and subsequent determination of percentages of obstruction of the pulmonary circulation. Echocardiographic severity criteria included the presence of signs of acute cor pulmonale and/or systolic pulmonary hypertension (>40 mm Hg). The SCTA depicted acute PE in all patients at T0 with complete resolution of endovascular clots in 10 patients at T1. At T0, the mean percentage of obstruction of the pulmonary arterial bed was significantly higher in the 22 patients with echocardiographic signs of severity (56±13 vs 28±32%; p<0.001). A significant reduction in the mean percentage of pulmonary artery obstruction was observed in the 19 patients with resolution of echocardiographic criteria of severity between T0 and T1 T0: 57±14%; T1: 7±11%; p<0.001).The threshold value for severe PE on CT angiograms was 49% (sensitivity: 0.773; specificity: 0.214). The mean (±SD) pulmonary artery pressure was significantly higher in the 26 patients with more than 50% obstruction of the pulmonary artery bed (45±15 mm Hg) than in the 10 patients with less than 50% obstruction of pulmonary artery bed at T0 (31±11 mm Hg; p<0.01). The CT severity score evaluated in the present study enables quantitative assessment of acute PE severity on spiral CT angiograms, readily applicable in routine clinical practice. Electronic Publication     

Survey on the use of pulmonary scintigraphy, spiral CT and conventional pulmonary angiography for suspected pulmonary embolism in the British Isles

AIM: To determine current clinical practice in the radiological diagnosis of acute pulmonary embolism and assess the use of spiral volumetric computed tomography. METHOD: A survey of 327 acute hospitals including cardiothoracic and orthopaedic tertiary referral centres was undertaken to assess current utilization of lung scintigraphy, spiral computed tomography and pulmonary angiography in the investigation of suspected pulmonary embolism. Responses were received from 215/327 (66%) centres. RESULTS: Lung scintigraphy was provided by 208 hospitals (144 on-site and 64 off-site). Spiral CT services were provided by 111 (52%) hospitals (on- or off-site), 142 (66%) units had access to angiographic facilities. Sixty-three centres out of 215 (29%) offered both on-site lung scintigraphy and spiral CT while only 41/215 (19%) hospitals were able to undertake all three tests on-site. On average, 501 perfusion (Q) or ventilation-perfusion (V/Q) scintigrams were performed per hospital per year with 26 spiral CT studies and just 4.6 pulmonary angiograms. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that lung scintigraphy is frequently the only imaging test in patients other than chest radiography, despite the large number of indeterminate results reported in most series.     

Reproducibility of multi-detector spiral computed tomography in detection of sub-segmental acute pulmonary embolism

The aim of this study was to evaluate the inter-observer and intra-observer agreement of the diagnosis of sub-segmental acute pulmonary embolism (PE) in an inpatient population explored by 16 slice multi-detector spiral computed tomography (MDCT). Four hundred consecutive inpatients were referred for MDCT for the clinical suspicion of acute PE. One hundred and seventy seven (44.2%) had a known cardio-respiratory disease at the time of examination. Inter-observer and intra-observer agreements for the diagnosis of acute PE and of sub-segmental acute PE were assessed blind and independently by three experienced readers and by kappa statistics. Seventy-five patients were diagnosed as having acute PE findings (19.5%), and clots were located exclusively within sub-segmental arteries in nine patients (12%). When clots were limited to sub-segmental or more distal branches of the pulmonary arteries, kappa values were found to be moderate (0.56) to very good (0.85) for the diagnosis of sub-segmental acute PE, whereas for the diagnosis of acute PE in the whole population, kappa values ranged from 0.84 to 0.97. Intra-observer agreement was found to be perfect (kappa=1). MDCT is a reproducible technique for the diagnosis of sub-segmental acute PE as well as for acute PE. In this inpatient population, sub-segmental acute PE was not a rare event.     

Prediction of short term outcome of pulmonary embolism: Parameters at 16 multi-detector CT pulmonary angiography

Purpose

To evaluate the accuracy of computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) parameters, for predicting short-term mortality in patients with acute pulmonary embolism (PE).

Materials and methods

Thirty-two patients with proven PE had CT pulmonary angiography were included in the study. The clot burden using the Qanadli score (QS), and the right ventricular dysfunction (RVD) parameters were assessed on CT by calculating right ventricular/left ventricular (RV/LV) diameter ratios, interventricular septum abnormality, inferior vena cava contrast reflux, azygous vein and superior vena cava measures. Contrast density in pulmonary artery and descending aorta was evaluated for all patients. Patients were followed up for 30 days and then classified as survivors or non survivors.

Results

Thirty-two patients were included in the study, 23 (71.8%) of them were classified as survivors, and the other nine (28.1%) patients died within the first month (non survivors). There was a positive, but weak correlation between the Qanadli score and the short term mortality (P value = 0.05). There was a statistically significant relationship between the RV/LV ratio and PE-related mortality, with a P value < 0.001. Also, there was a good correlation between degree of IVC reflux and PE outcome (P < 0.001). The PA/AO diameter ratio, SVC diameter and azygous vein diameter showed no statistically significant difference between survivors and non survivors.

Conclusions

CTPA findings that may predict short term mortality are the high grades of inferior vena cava reflux, RV/LV diameter ratio more than 1.2, and clot burden >18 according to the Qanadli score and to a lesser degree the interventricular septum abnormality.     

CT肺动脉成像结合D-二聚体对急诊肺栓塞病人的诊断价值

目的分析以胸痛为主要表现于急诊就诊的病人采用CT肺动脉成像(CTPA)结合D-二聚体检测肺栓塞的临床应用价值。方法回顾性分析自2015年1月1日—2017年6月30日于急诊以胸痛就诊并行CTPA检查的病人155例,其中男83例,女72例,年龄13~84岁,平均(55±16)岁。分析和记录肺栓塞的有无及其发生率,分析无肺栓塞病人伴发的有临床诊疗意义的病变。记录纳入病人的D-二聚体值。采用Fisher精确检验分析D-二聚体阳性组和阴性组CTPA上肺栓塞的检出率;采用独立样本t检验比较D-二聚体异常组CTPA上肺栓塞病人和非肺栓塞病人的D-二聚体值。以CTPA诊断为参考标准,评估D-二聚体在诊断肺栓塞中的价值。结果155例病人中,50例(32.3%)病人经CTPA诊断为肺栓塞,105例(67.7%)病人无肺栓塞。152例病人进行了D-二聚体测量。按照常规D-二聚体参考值0.5 mg/d L为阳性阈值,其中二聚体值阳性128例,阴性24例。24例D-二聚体值阴性者CTPA上均无肺栓塞(0/24),CTPA上有肺栓塞的50例病人(50/128,39.1%)的D-二聚体值为阳性,78例D-二聚体阳性者的CTPA上无肺栓塞,2组肺栓塞检出率的差异有统计学意义(Fisher精确检验,P<0.001)。D-二聚体值阳性组中,50例病人于CTPA上诊断为肺栓塞,78例CTPA上无肺栓塞,两者的平均D-二聚体值差异无统计学意义[分别为(6.11±5.59)mg/d L和(5.26±6.67)mg/d L,t=0.741,P=0.460]。以CTPA检测结果为参考,D-二聚体诊断肺栓塞的敏感度、特异度、阳性预测值、阴性预测值分别为100%、23.5%、39.1%、100%。结论本研究提示结合D-二聚体的测定推荐CTPA检查有助于进一步提高肺栓塞检测的阳性率。     

Pulmonary embolism findings on chest radiographs and multislice spiral CT

Multislice spiral CT is becoming an increasingly important tool for diagnosing pulmonary embolism. However, in many instances, a chest radiograph is usually performed as a first-line examination. Many parenchymal, vascular, and other ancillary findings may be observed on both imaging modalities with a highly detailed depiction of abnormalities on multislice CT. A comprehensive review of chest radiograph findings is presented with side-by-side correlations of CT images reformatted mainly in the frontal plane.     

Accuracy of CT angiography versus pulmonary angiography in the diagnosis of acute pulmonary embolism: evaluation of the literature with summary ROC curve analysis

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: The authors performed this study to estimate, by using published data, the sensitivity and specificity of computed tomographic (CT) angiography in the evaluation of suspected acute pulmonary embolism (PE). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Summary receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to determine the sensitivity and specificity of CT angiography in the diagnosis of acute PE. Pulmonary angiography was used as the diagnostic standard of reference. The authors reviewed the results of 11 independent studies published in the English-language literature between January 1992 and June 1999. RESULTS: The sensitivity of CT angiography in the diagnosis or exclusion of PE in the central pulmonary arteries (to the level of the segmental pulmonary arteries) ranged from 0.74 to 0.81 on the basis of specificities of 0.89-0.91. The sensitivity of CT angiography in the diagnosis or exclusion of PE in all pulmonary arteries (to the level of the subsegmental pulmonary arteries) was 0.68 on the basis of a specificity of 0.91. CONCLUSION: On the basis of the studies in the current literature, most of which used 5.0-mm collimation and single-detector CT, CT angiography may be less accurate in the diagnosis of PE than previously reported. With improvements in data acquisition, particularly the use of thinner section collimation and multidetector CT, and in the increased use of workstations for data analysis, the accuracy and utility of CT angiography will require continued investigation.     

Coronary artery aneurysm and type-A aortic dissection demonstrated by retrospectively ECG-gated multislice spiral CT

The case of a 40-year-old male patient with a coronary aneurysm of the proximal left descending artery (LAD) combined with circumferential type-A dissection of the ascending aorta is reported. Computed tomography angiography of the coronary arteries was performed using multislice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) with retrospective ECG gating. Anatomical relations of the LAD aneurysm as well as the origin of the left coronary artery from the false lumen of the dissection were well depicted for planning of the surgical intervention using this new noninvasive imaging modality.     

320层动态容积CT血管成像在肺动脉栓塞中的诊断价值

目的探讨320层动态容积CT血管成像在诊断肺动脉栓塞中的价值。方法回顾性分析30例临床确诊为肺动脉栓塞的320层动态容积CT肺动脉成像资料,并用最大密度投影(MIP)、多平面重组(MPR)、容积再现(VR)等方法显示肺动脉。结果 30例患者中,其中左右肺动脉栓塞有15支,叶肺动脉栓塞30支,段及亚段肺动脉栓塞60支。偏心型45支,闭塞型40支,中央型12支,附壁环形型5支。结论 320层动态容积CT肺动脉成像可作为肺动脉栓塞诊断的首选方法。     

螺旋CT诊断急性肺栓塞的价值

目的:评价螺旋CT诊断急性肺栓塞的价值。方法:对临床拟诊肺栓塞108例患者行胸部扫描和肺动脉造影,同时检测患者血浆D-二聚体。结果:108例螺旋CT胸部扫描和肺动脉造影中,肺动脉栓塞53例,其中右肺动脉栓塞11例、左肺动脉栓塞6例和双侧36例,合并胸水10例、心包积液3例和肺梗死5例。血浆D-二聚体低于250μg/L的6例。排除肺栓塞并检出和诊断为其他疾病55例,其中包括心功能不全致间质性肺水肿、胸水10例,肺炎5例,肺结核5例,胸水、心脏增大3例,肺癌1例,纵隔淋巴结肿大2例,胸水、胰腺炎1例,降主动脉附壁血栓1例,肺间质纤维化1例。结论:螺旋CT肺动脉造影能早诊断和排除肺栓塞,造影前必须行CT平扫,以便检出和诊断胸部其他病变,螺旋CT可作为肺栓塞的首选检查方法。     

Demonstration of pulmonary embolism with gadolinium-enhanced spiral CT

The authors report a case of successful detection of pulmonary embolism using gadolinium-enhanced spiral CT (Gadodiamide, 0.4 mmol/kg, 2 ml/s, delay 18 s) in a 77-year-old woman, with previous allergy to iodinated contrast medium, and renal failure, who presented with pulmonary arterial hypertension. Doppler ultrasound of the lower limbs was first performed and revealed a deep venous thrombosis of the right lower limb. To establish if venous thrombosis was the cause of pulmonary hypertension and to confirm that pulmonary endarterectomy was not indicated in this situation, several imaging modalities were performed. Lung scintigraphy and MRI were non-diagnostic. Gadolinium-enhanced spiral CT demonstrated a large thrombus located proximally and in a segmental artery of the right lower lobe. This case illustrates the potential usefulness of gadolinium as alternative contrast agent with spiral CT to diagnose pulmonary embolism and elucidate the cause of pulmonary arterial hypertension in a patient with some contraindications for iodinated contrast medium injection.     

CT和MR血管成像诊断急性肺栓塞的Meta分析

目的：应用 Meta 分析法,以 DSA 为金标准,探讨 CT 肺动脉成像（CTPA）和磁共振肺血管成像（MRPA）对肺动脉栓塞（PE）的诊断价值。方法：检索 Cochrane 图书馆、Medline 数据库、Springerlink 数据库及 Ovid 循证医学数据库中1994～2013年发表的英文文献以及知网数据库和万方医学数据库中1994～2013年发表的中文文献,按照 Cochrane 协作网推荐的诊断性实验的纳入标准,严格筛选与“CTPA 和／或 MRPA 诊断急性 PE”相关的文献。在符合条件的文献中提取诊断信息（包括真阳性值、假阳性值、真阴性值、假阴性值）和其它相关数据。采用 Stata 12软件和 Meta-disc 1．4软件对纳入文献行统计学处理,包括异质性检验,计算敏感度和特异度及其95％可信区间,选择相应的效应模型予以加权定量合并,绘制汇总的工作特征曲线（SROC）,最后进行敏感性分析。结果：按照纳入标准共获取有效文献17篇,其中与 CTPA相关的文献10篇,与 MRPA 相关的文献7篇。17篇文献均满足诊断性研究质量评价工具（QUADAS）中提出的14项标准中的10项以上。CTPA 及 MRPA 两组中的相关研究均有异质性,按照随机效应模型对纳入文献进行汇总分析。结果显示,CTPA 诊断肺栓塞的敏感度、特异度及各自的95％可信区间分别为0．78（0．74～0．82）和0．90（0．87～0．92）,MR-PA 为0．86（0．79～0．92）和0．97（0．94～0．99）,SROC 下面积分别为94％和98％。结论：CTPA 和 MRPA 对急性肺栓塞的诊断均具有很高的价值,两种方法的诊断特异度均很高,作为诊断肺栓塞的无创性检查方法可基本替代 DSA 检查。     

CT pulmonary angiography is the first-line imaging test for acute pulmonary embolism: a survey of US clinicians

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: Our aim is to document current imaging practices for diagnosing acute pulmonary embolism (PE) among physicians practicing in the United States and explore factors associated with these practices. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between September 2004 and February 2005, we surveyed by mail 855 physicians selected at random from membership lists of three professional organizations. Physicians reported their imaging practices and experiences in managing patients with suspected acute PE during the preceding 12 months. RESULTS: Completed questionnaires were received from 240 of 806 eligible participants (29.8%) practicing in 44 states: 86.7% of respondents believed that computed tomographic pulmonary angiography (CTPA) was the most useful imaging procedure for patients with acute PE compared with 8.3% for ventilation-perfusion (V-P) scintigraphy and 2.5% for conventional pulminary angiography (PA). After chest radiography, CTPA was the first imaging test requested 71.4% of the time compared with V-P scintigraphy (19.7%) and lower-limb venous ultrasound (5.8%). Participants received indeterminate or inconclusive results 46.4% of the time for V-P scintigraphy, 10.6% of the time for CTPA, and 2.2% of the time for PA. CTPA was available around the clock to 88.3% of participants compared with 53.8% for V-P scintigraphy and 42.5% for PA. A total of 68.6% of respondents received CTPA results in 2 hours or less (vs 37.5% for V-P scintigraphy and 22.9% for PA). CTPA also provided an alternative diagnosis to PE or showed other significant abnormalities 28.5% of the time, and these findings frequently altered management. CONCLUSION: US clinicians unequivocally prefer CTPA in patients with suspected acute PE. Reasons for this preference include availability and timely reporting, a lower rate of inconclusive results, and the additional diagnostic capabilities that CTPA can provide.     

CT angiography of pulmonary embolism in patients with underlying respiratory disease: impact of multislice CT on image quality and negative predictive value

Our objective was to evaluate the impact of multislice CT (MSCT) on image quality and diagnostic value of spiral CT angiograms. Over an 8-month period (January 2000 to August 2000), 134 consecutive patients, including 55 patients with underlying lung disease, underwent MSCT (group 1). Image quality and diagnostic results of CT angiograms were compared with those obtained in 125 consecutive patients, including 58 patients with underlying lung disease, evaluated with thin-collimation single slice CT (SSCT; group 2) over a similar period of time (January 1999 to August 1999). A 3-month clinical follow-up was systematically obtained in all patients who were not anticoagulated in the two groups. For a significantly longer mean z-axis coverage, the mean duration of data acquisition was significantly shorter with MSCT. The frequency of examinations devoid of motion artifacts was significantly higher in group 1 than in group 2. In the absence of significant difference in the quality of vascular enhancement, mainly coded as good or excellent, the proportion of examinations interpretable down to the subsegmental arteries was higher in group 1 (57.5%) than in group 2 (13%) ( p<0.0001). The benefits of MSCT were more marked for patients with underlying respiratory disease and did not lead to a higher detection rate of peripheral pulmonary embolism. The negative predictive values of single-slice and multislice CT were 100 and 99%, respectively. Improvement in image quality on MSCT scans accounts for the improved diagnostic accuracy of CT angiography, in particular for patients with impaired respiratory function.