Radiology Question for the Week of January 8, 2018

Question:

What is the key distinction between a standard CT and a CTA?

Answer:

Although the data acquired during a computed tomography angiography (CTA) is primarily focused on evaluating the vessels, data acquisition also includes surrounding skeletal anatomy and soft tissues as acquired in a standard CT. It is important to note that imaging of the vessels alone is not necessarily considered a CTA for coding purposes. To report a code for a CTA, 3D reconstruction post-processing must be done to evaluate the vessels. If there is no 3D reformatting performed, then the exam should be coded as a CT and not a CTA.

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