PULMONARY-EMBOLISM - DIAGNOSIS WITH ELECTRON-BEAM CT

Contrast material-enhanced electron-beam computed tomography (CT) (100 -msec scan time) was performed to image the pulmonary vasculature in 8 6 patients, each suspected of having a pulmonary embolism (PE). Thromb oembolic material was demonstrated in 39 patients; no emboli were demo nstrated in 47. In 25 patients, angiographic or pathologic proof was a vailable. There were 19 proved positive CT scans, four proved negative scans, one false-negative scan, and one false-positive scan. In the 2 1 patients with CT and angiographic correlation, evidence of thromboem bolic disease was seen in 88 vascular zones. Fifty-three zones were po sitive for PE at both CT and angiography. Eighteen zones were positive for PE at angiography alone, and 17 zones were positive at CT alone. Electron-beam CT is a potentially effective noninvasive means of diagn osing PE.