Does coronary artery screening by electron beam computed tomography motivate potentially beneficial lifestyle behaviors?

Ultrasound Detection of Increased Carotid Intima-Media Thickness and Carotid Plaque in an Office Practice Setting: Does It Affect Physician Behavior or Patient Motivation?

“…These findings are concordant with those of a small study of plaque screening in a cardiology clinic 15 and 2 studies in which patients with higher coronary artery calcium scores were more likely to begin taking aspirin, lipid-lowering medications, or antihypertensive therapy. 25,26 This is an important finding given the welldocumented undertreatment of risk factors in the United States. 27,28 Interestingly, the very act of screening increased patients' stated motivation to exercise and make dietary changes.…”

Atherosclerosis Screening by Noninvasive Imaging for Cardiovascular Prevention: A Systematic Review

“…One study showed an increase in anxiety levels after such screening, 15 which was not found in two other studies 16,43 (Tables 3 and 4). Another study found that atherosclerosis screening may result in subsequent invasive testing and increased healthcare utilization.…”

“…After a two-step screening process, 12 articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria. 11,[14][15][16][17][18]32,[35][36][37][38][39] Using the abstract and title on the first screen, 13 disagreements concerning eligibility for a full-text review occurred between the two reviewers (kappa=0.81). For the second screen, which was based on the full-text review of 41 studies, there was one disagreement (kappa=0.94).…”

“…In 2003, a review for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) identified only two studies that examined the impact of coronary artery calcification [CAC, by computed tomography (CT)] screening on riskreducing behaviors. 13 These two studies were not randomized, 14,15 and behavior outcomes were self-reported. Since this publication, new studies [16][17][18] or studies with other screening techniques 11 have been published.…”

Point: Diabetic Patients and Coronary Calcium

“…Unfortunately, the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes comes with a need for multidrug therapy, requiring aspirin, ACE-inhibitors, and statins, in addition to multiple oral hypoglycemics. Wong et al (8) demonstrated that individuals with CAC have been reported to be more likely to undertake preventive health measures, including beginning cholesterol-or blood pressure-lowering medications, starting aspirin, initiating an exercise program, following a low-fat diet, or quitting smoking. This improved compliance is especially important in a diabetic population, in which the average person may take seven or more different medications daily and are expected to adhere to a more strict diet and exercise regimen.…”