Tomography Scan Essay

A computerized tomography scan, also known as a CT scan, is a series of x-ray images taken from different angles, specifically referencing the coronary area. It uses computer processing to detect calcium deposits found in atherosclerotic plaque in the coronary arteries of heart disease patients. It generates three-dimensional snapshots of the blood vessels that surround the heart, as well as the heart itself (Levy, 2014). When CT scans were first invented by the British engineer, Godfrey Hounsfield, in 1972, the procedure was not effective on the cardiovascular system, as the heart is always in motion. In the early stages of the CT scan, it was only able to take 1-8 slices per minute, which is much slower than the rate of the heart. CT scans were more efficient when performed on areas such as the brain or the abdominal cavity. However, with great perseverance by a new generation of engineers and doctors working together, they have come to the understanding that the CT scan, working with medication, the heart rate of a patient can be slowed down for the process, to a little less than 64 bpm, thus providing clear and efficient CT images, especially of the coronary arteries (MedicineNet, 2015).

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Also, women are less likely to survive a heart attack than men because of their physical endurance??? My great-grandmother, Helen, suffered a heart attack, but as it was detected almost at once by the use of a CT scan, she was treated quickly and accordingly at the hospital, enabling her to live a bit longer. In the brief time I knew her, she and I became very close, so it was of great concern to me when she had the heart attack and it prompted me to becoming interested in the CT scan