A study at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles says myocardial perfusion SPECT screening with Cardiolite can help determine which seniors are at greatest risk for cardiac death, according to the product's manufacturer, DuPont Pharmaceuticals of North Billerica, MA. The study also found evidence that more aggressive treatment may be warranted even in patients with mild ischemia.
The researchers evaluated the prognostic value of stress-induced ischemia in 15,081 patients referred for myocardial perfusion SPECT with Cardiolite, a technetium-based radiopharmaceutical. They found that the statistical threshold of increased risk of cardiac death decreased with advancing age, and also that ischemia extent as defined by Cardiolite was an independent estimator of cardiac death (P<0.0001).
According to lead researcher Leslee Shaw, the findings demonstrate the ability of a noninvasive heart scan to accurately assess the degree of cardiac ischemia, which is critical to the long-term survival of patients.
Cedars-Sinai's director of nuclear medicine cardiology, Dr. Daniel Berman, said the findings are even more significant considering that cardiac ischemia is the leading cause of death among elderly patients.
By AuntMinnie.com staff writersDecember 5, 2000
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