Heart Scans: Safer for Kids, Abbott Northwestern Hospital Reveals

Coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) is an effective way to diagnose kids with heart problems. Now, newer techniques are making CTA safer for pediatric patients. "Traditionally, pediatric patients who require coronary artery imaging have undergone a cardiac catheterization, which is an invasive procedure with a significant radiation dose, requiring sedation or anesthesia for all patients," B. Kelly Han, M.D., a pediatric cardiologist at Minneapolis Heart Institute at Abbott Northwestern Hospital and the Children's Heart Clinic and Children's Hospitals and Clinics in Minneapolis, was quoted as saying. "The newer CT scanners deliver far less radiation than both previous generation CT scanners and catheter-based angiography. Also, CTA is non-invasive and has different protocols that can be tailored to decrease the risk for each individual patient."