On Thursday 5 June at 13:00, Nadia Iraqi defends her PhD dissertation entitled "Coronary CT derived quantitative plaque and fractional flow reserve (FFRCT) assessment in patients with stable coronary artery disease: A methodological and clinical evaluation".

A new PhD project from the Faculty of Health at Aarhus University investigates the reproducibility of non-invasive CT-derived methods to quantify atherosclerotic plaque and blood flow in the coronary arteries. The aim is to assess whether these methods can reliably be used for serial monitoring of coronary artery disease (CAD), as well as evaluating the effect of cholesterol-lowering treatment over time using repeated cardiac CT scans (CCTA). 

CCTA is a non-invasive imaging modality used for the diagnosis of patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD). With recent technological advancements, CCTA scans of the coronary arteries now enable precise quantification of plaque burden, characterization of plaque type, and assessment of coronary blood flow using FFRCT - a computational analysis based on CCTA images. To use these measurements for monitoring CAD progression or regression and treatment response, it is essential that they are reproducible. The PhD project included a cohort of 104 patients with stable CAD who underwent serial CCTA scans. The aim of the project was twofold: first, to assess the interscan reproducibility of CCTA-derived plaque volume measurements and FFRCT; and second, to investigate time-dependent changes in coronary plaque volumes following initiation of two different cholesterol-lowering treatment strategies.

The summary is written by the PhD student. 

The defence is public and takes place in auditorium G206-142, Entrance G, Aarhus University Hospital. Please see the press release for more information.

Contact

PhD student Nadia Iraqi
Mail: nadiairaqi@clin.au.dk
Phone: +45 60148358

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