Role of multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) angiography in preoperative assessment of coarctation of the aorta in pediatric patients and young adults

IntroductionAim of this work is to assess the reliability of 64-slice multidetector computed tomographic (MDCT) angiography for the preoperative assessment of coarctation of the aorta in pediatric patients and young adults.Material and methodsTwenty eight patients with clinical suspicion of coarctation of the aorta who underwent both Doppler echocardiography and MDCT angiography were included in the study. MDCT angiography findings were compared with both Doppler echocardiography and surgical results.ResultsThe overall sensitivity of three-dimensional MDCT angiography for diagnosis of the coarctation of the aorta was (100%) which was higher than that of Doppler echocardiography (91%).The overall sensitivity of MDCT angiography for the assessment of cardiac defects was (88%) which was lower than that of Doppler echocardiography (100%).ConclusionWe concluded that MDCT angiography with multiplanar and three dimensional techniques can be considered the modality of choice for preoperative assessment of coarctation of the aorta in pediatric patients and young adults.