--- title: Combination CT Scans May Make Heart Tests Easier description: Heart disease is a nasty enough problem. It would be nice if the tests you have to go through just to get your diagnosis didn't... canonical: https://time.com/archive/7143487/combination-ct-scans-may-make-heart-tests-easier/ author: TIME Staff article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2010-11-17T16:02:28.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-25T05:43:18.455Z article:section: Health og:title: Combination CT Scans May Make Heart Tests Easier og:description: Heart disease is a nasty enough problem. It would be nice if the tests you have to go through just to get your diagnosis didn't... og:url: https://time.com/archive/7143487/combination-ct-scans-may-make-heart-tests-easier/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta440f9c1dc3ae641/698a951c9d83e8181bba0653/ctcropped.jpg?branch=production&width=307&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 307 og:image:height: 173 og:image:alt: 98875862 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Combination CT Scans May Make Heart Tests Easier twitter:description: Heart disease is a nasty enough problem. It would be nice if the tests you have to go through just to get your diagnosis didn't... twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta440f9c1dc3ae641/698a951c9d83e8181bba0653/ctcropped.jpg?branch=production&width=307&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Health](/section/health/) # Combination CT Scans May Make Heart Tests Easier > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=8663cb0c-4a2d-4ee6-872c-c03aef6bff39&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) Nov 17, 2010 4:02 PM UTC  Calcium Score Testing CAT Scan Computer Tomography Calcium Score Testing CAT Scan Computer Tomography Getty Images/Flickr RF by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) Nov 17, 2010 4:02 PM UTC Heart disease is a nasty enough problem. It would be nice if the tests you have to go through just to get your diagnosis didn’t cause so much unpleasantness of their own. Now they may not have to, thanks to a combination CT scan developed by doctors at Johns Hopkins University.more Typically, patients with suspected arterial blockage undergo either a two-hour SPECT scan, in which a radioactive dye is injected into the body, or an angiogram, in which a catheter is threaded into the heart vessels. In a paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Heart Association, the Hopkins team described how a pair of noninvasive CT scans — one that detects plaque buildup and one that measures blood or flow — can be nearly as accurate as either traditional test. (**More on Time.com:** [6 Common Sources of Radiation In Your Life](http://healthland.time.com/2010/09/14/do-you-know-how-much-radiation-youre-getting/)) The new system comes up short in some categories — detecting only 71% of the cases of reduced blood flow that SPECT does and 90% of the severely clogged arteries spotted by a combination SPECT and angiogram, for example. But the brevity of the scans — about 30 mins. — and their low radiation level are big advantages. The CTs could also help prevent the 250,00 or so catheterizations that take place each year to fix blockages that turn out not to exist. **More on Time.com:** [Can Heart Attacks Be Predicted With a Blood Test?](http://healthland.time.com/2010/10/04/predicting-heart-attack-with-a-blood-test/) [How Not to Get Sick](http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/0,28757,1903873,00.html) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/archive/7143487/combination-ct-scans-may-make-heart-tests-easier/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/archive/7143487/combination-ct-scans-may-make-heart-tests-easier/"},"headline":"Combination CT Scans May Make Heart Tests Easier","datePublished":"2010-11-17T16:02:28.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-25T05:43:18.455Z","description":"Heart disease is a nasty enough problem. 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