Multi-Society, Multi-Disciplinary Writing Group Releases CAD-RADSTM,
to Standardize Reporting of Coronary CT Angiography
Quality Improvement for Patients Worldwide is Key Goal
Three medical professional societies today jointly released a new reporting system to standardize reporting of patients undergoing coronary computed tomography angiography (coronary CTA). Termed CAD-RADS
TM
(Coronary Artery Disease Reporting and Data System), this system will bring consistency to reporting of coronary CTA diagnostic information for millions of patients worldwide.
Unlike many other major disease areas, until now no standardized system has existed to classify and report patient data for CT scans of
coronary artery disease
. CAD-RADS fulfills that long-sought goal of the radiology, cardiology and industry communities.
Ricardo C. Cury, MD (Miami Cardiac and Vascular Institute, Radiology Associates of South Florida and SCCT Past President), led a 17-member multi-disciplinary Expert Consensus Group representing four professional societies: The
Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography
(SCCT, the lead society for CAD-RADS), The
American College of Radiology
(ACR, co-author), the
North American Society for Cardiovascular Imaging
(NASCI, co-author) and the
American College of Cardiology
(ACC, which endorsed this publication).
Dr. Cury noted that "our societies developed CAD-RADS to improve communication of coronary CTA results to referring physicians in a consistent fashion, including considerations for patient management. Standardized reporting will benefit education, research, peer review and quality assurance and improved quality of care. The teamwork amongst our multi-society, multi-disciplinary writing group was exemplary."
Dr. Cury urges the practice community and industry to become familiar with the CAD-RADS classification and modifiers system. "Today's article is the starting point for a very important process: next, to promote incorporation of CAD-RADS into daily practice, SCCT will partner with other societies and industry to develop tools for every coronary CTA facility considering adoption of CAD-RADS."
SCCT President-Elect Leslee J. Shaw, PhD added that the next step will be "development of highly sophisticated decision support tools and registries.
CAD-RADS is an important part of our strategic plan to ensure that all patients undergoing CCTA have the highest quality of cardiovascular care."
Summarizing this effort, SCCT President Jonathon A. Leipsic, MD commented that "I am extremely proud of the leadership taken by SCCT and ACR, ACC and NASCI, and especially by my colleague and Immediate Past President Dr. Ricardo C. Cury to make this important document a reality. This is the first step towards enabling a deeper understanding of the current clinical use of coronary CT angiography and to enable large-scale registry development. This document will inevitably be a living one that will undergo iteration informed by its initial clinical integration. I have no doubt that SCCT, our members, and our leadership will work tirelessly to advance this initiative in collaboration with other societies and stakeholders for the betterment of the patients we serve."
ACR Chief Executive Officer
William T. Thorwarth Jr.,
MD, FACR, commented that "The ACR, through our representatives on this important project, was pleased to be a part of this critical effort to enable the standardized reporting and subsequent ongoing evaluation and optimal performance of this valuable examination."
The societies are committed to the widest possible distribution of CAD-RADS to the practice community.
The document will be published online today in the
Journal of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography
, the
Journal of the American College of Radiology
®
(JACR) and JACC Cardiovascular Imaging.
The complete document can be downloaded at
www.scct.org
.
CAD-RADS Writing Group members: Ricardo C. Cury, MD (Chair); Suhny Abbara, MD; Stephan Achenbach, MD; Arthur Agatston, MD; Daniel S. Berman, MD; Matthew J. Budoff, MD; Karin Dill, MD; Jill E. Jacobs, MD; Christopher D. Maroules, MD; Geoffrey D. Rubin, MD; Frank J. Rybicki, MD, PhD; U. Joseph Schoepf, MD; Leslee J. Shaw, PhD; Arthur E. Stillman, MD; Charles S. White, MD; Pamela K. Woodard MD; Jonathon A. Leipsic, MD
