Coronary artery bypass grafts and MDCT imaging: what to know and what to look for

Multi-detector row CT (MDCT) scanners with high spatial and temporal resolutions are now available and are increasingly used for non-invasive assessment of vascular disease, including coronary arteries and coronary artery bypass grafts (CABG). Follow-up of patients who have previously undergone surgical\r\nrevascularization for coronary artery\r\ndisease is nowadays one of the main\r\napplications of MDCT. Thanks to the\r\ncontinuous technical evolution of the\r\nCT scanners, it is now possible to scan\r\nthe heart and the full anatomic extent\r\nof grafts with sub-millimeter slicethickness within a single breath-hold. In the evaluation of these patients, it is important for the radiologist to be familiar with the different types of grafts and surgical techniques to know the main characteristics of each graft type and what to look for in the assessment of a patient who has undergone coronary artery surgical revascularization. This review summarizes some surgical aspects, the biological characteristics of conduits, and the main technical MDCT features, and describes the CABG anatomy together with some typical CT\r\nfindings.