DIAGNOSTIC ACCURACY OF MULTIDETECTOR COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY IN PULMONARY EMBOLISM

Abstract

Pulmonary embolism is one of the most severe and potentially fatal emergencies that demands fine and timely identification. MDCT has become one of the main techniques in the diagnosis of PE because of the high spatial resolution and short scan time. This paper aims to assess the sensitivity and specificity of MDCT in diagnosing pulmonary embolism while comparing it with gold standards such as pulmonary angiography. Included in the study was 200 patients in whom a suspected PE was considered. Serial MDCT achieved sensitivity of 93% and specificity of 97% for diagnosing PE. Moreover, it revealed other findings like infarcts and pleural effusion when present through MDCT. Drawbacks were absent in detecting subsegmental emboli and in patients contraindicated for contrast use. These conclusions emphasise the role of MDCT in diagnosing PE and identify further potential for clinical evaluation and other imaging modalities that might help combat the issues inherent in more complex or emergent circumstances.

Keywords: MDCT, PE, diagnostic performance, PA, sensitivity, specificity