• Cardiac CT
• chest pain
• coronary heart disease
• cardiology

Advances in multidetector CT technology over the past decade, including improvements in spatial and temporal resolution and the introduction of electrocardiographic gating, has made non-invasive visualisation of the coronary arteries feasible. The potential to obtain information non-invasively that is comparable to that provided by invasive coronary angiography has been a major driving force behind the rapid growth and dissemination of coronary CT angiography (CCTA).1 Non-invasive coronary imaging requires a CT system capable of acquiring motion-free, high-resolution images covering the entire heart in a single breath hold. Current-generation 64-detector row systems and more recently introduced CT scanners with 128-, 256- and 320-detector rows fulfil these requirements.1 Most UK radiology departments are in possession of such technology, and many can now provide, or are in the process of setting up, a cardiac CT service.2 In this issue of Postgraduate Medical Journal, Yerramasu et al provide a succinct review of the current status of CCTA technology and its application to the investigation of patients …