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Question:
In a coronary CT scan, what exactly does the LAD score and Plaque score mean?
My CT scoring is
CORONARY ARTERY SCORE, Left Main Artery (LMA) 0, Left Anterior Descending (LAD) 56,
Left Circumflex (LCX) 10, Right Coronary (RCA) 16, Diagonals 0, Posterior Descending Artery (PDA) 0, TOTAL 82. Plaque Volume: 39 mm3.
I am diabetic and this is my lipid panel: Cholesterol 0 - 200 mg/dL 134, ATP III Classification:< 200 mg/dL Desirable, 200 - 239 mg/dL Borderline High, >= 240 mg/dL High, Triglycerides <150 mg/dL 10, HDL >39 mg/dL 35.
I have never had the CT scan before but what exactly does the LAD score and Plaque score mean? What can I do to reverse this or treat it? I am on Crestor. I have kept my AIC to 6.6. What should my follow up treatment be?
submitted by Chris from Charlotte, North Carolina on 3/10/2014
Answers:
by Texas Heart Institute cardiologist, Patrick J. Cook, MD
Calcium in the coronary circulation roughly tracks the amount of plaque – the higher the score, the more plaque. Obviously, a score of "zero" is optimal, and a score of >300 (or >400, depending upon who you listen to) warrants further work-up, like a treadmill test or nuclear study. A higher score does NOT correlate with the SEVERITY of any particular stenosis. Your score is not unduly high, but does suggest some atherosclerotic involvement of the coronaries. The "treatment" is aggressive cardiovascular risk management.....just what you are doing. By the way, there is no data to suggest serial tracking of calcium scores is beneficial.
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Updated March 2014
