The role of nuclear cardiology in clinical decision making

This review suggests that the field of nuclear cardiology is alive, well, a nd thriving, providing relevant information that aids in everyday clinical decision making for nuclear medicine and referring physicians alike. Despit e the competition from other modalities, the clinically appropriate applica tions of nuclear cardiology techniques are likely to increase. The foundati on of this optimism is based on the vast amount of data documenting cost-ef fective clinical applications for diagnosis, risk stratification, and asses sing therapy in both chronic and acute coronary artery disease (CAD), the p owerful objective quantitative analysis of perfusion and function provided by the technique, and the increasing general availability of the approach. Copyright (C) 1999 by W.B. Saunders Company.