Cardiac Calcium Scoring (CAC Score)

Low-dose ECG-gated cardiac calcium scoring (Agatston score) at AGEL Ostrava-Vítkovice on the Philips IQon Spectral CT. No contrast required. Quantifies coronary arterial calcium as a predictor of cardiovascular risk and event probability.

Cardiac calcium scoring at AGEL Ostrava-Vítkovice uses a dedicated low-dose ECG-gated CT protocol on the Philips IQon Spectral CT to quantify the total amount of calcified plaque within the coronary arteries without intravenous contrast. The result is expressed as an Agatston score — a validated, reproducible index of coronary arterial calcium (CAC) burden that has been shown in multiple large prospective studies to be one of the most powerful independent predictors of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), including myocardial infarction and cardiovascular death. Coronary calcium develops as atherosclerosis progresses: calcium deposits within arterial plaque increase in quantity and density over time, and their aggregate burden correlates closely with total plaque load even though individual plaques may be non-calcified. A zero calcium score (CAC = 0) is associated with a very low ten-year cardiovascular event rate — typically below 1% in intermediate-risk individuals — and recent evidence supports deferring or de-intensifying statin and aspirin therapy in patients with CAC = 0. Conversely, CAC scores above 100 or above the 75th percentile for age and sex identify patients who benefit from intensified preventive treatment. The U.S. Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) and European risk guidelines endorse CAC scoring for intermediate-risk patients where treatment decisions remain unclear after standard risk factor assessment. The examination itself takes only a few minutes in the scanner and requires no contrast, no fasting, and no significant preparation. ECG gating freezes cardiac motion, and the IQon's iMR iterative reconstruction achieves 60–80% dose reduction compared to conventional CT — making the radiation exposure from a calcium scoring examination exceptionally low, comparable to a few days of natural background radiation in most protocols. The radiologist quantifies each major coronary vessel (left main, LAD, LCx, RCA) separately and reports both individual vessel and total Agatston scores, with percentile interpretation relative to age- and sex-matched norms using the MESA reference database. For patients who have already undergone coronary CTA at AGEL Ostrava-Vítkovice, calcium scoring data is embedded within the same acquisition, providing a calcium score at no additional radiation dose. For patients seeking calcium scoring as a standalone preventive check without the full coronary CTA, a dedicated low-dose protocol is available. AGEL Ostrava-Vítkovice is located in Ostrava-Vítkovice and bookings are made through the radiology reception at +420 595 633 479.