Real-world impact of coronary artery calcium scoring on primary prevention management in a community cardiology practice.
- 1Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
- 2University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA.
- 3Cardiology Consultants of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Abstract
Study objective
To evaluate the impact of coronary artery calcium (CAC) scoring on lipid-lowering therapy intensification, aspirin initiation, and downstream cardiac testing in primary prevention patients in a community cardiology setting.Design
Retrospective observational study.Setting
Single community cardiology practice.Participants
Four hundred consecutive patients undergoing CAC scoring in 2022.Interventions
CAC scoring used for risk stratification and clinical decision-making.Main outcome measures
Changes in lipid-lowering therapy, aspirin initiation, and downstream cardiac testing across CAC categories (0, 1-99, 100-399, ≥400); risk reclassification using Pooled Cohort Equations (PCE) and Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) risk scores.Results
Among 400 patients (mean age 60.2 ± 10.6 years; 46.5% male), 30% had CAC = 0, 37% CAC 1-99, 18% CAC 100-399, and 16% CAC ≥400. Lipid therapy modification increased across categories (7.7%, 33.3%, 69.0%, 81.7%; p < 0.001), as did aspirin initiation among aspirin-naive patients (1.0%, 8.0%, 51.9%, 52.5%; p < 0.001) and stress testing (2.7%, 6.5%, 29.0%, 68.6%; p < 0.001). Each one-category CAC increment was independently associated with lipid therapy modification (adjusted OR 4.36, 95% CI 3.13-6.06), aspirin initiation (OR 4.48, 95% CI 2.85-7.03), and stress testing (OR 5.11, 95% CI 3.33-7.84; all p < 0.001). CAC changed MESA risk category in 192/348 patients (55.2%): 87 upward and 105 downward.Conclusions
CAC burden was independently associated with graded intensification of lipid-lowering therapy, aspirin initiation, and downstream testing after multivariable adjustment, extending prior descriptive literature with persistent, quantified associations in real-world community practice. Improvement in clinical outcomes cannot be assessed from this retrospective, six-month implementation study.
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BibTeX
@article{iamrl2026realworld,
title = {{Real-world impact of coronary artery calcium scoring on primary prevention management in a community cardiology practice.}},
author = {Fahdem Iamrl and Matthew Sangoi and Douglas Jacoby and Daniel E Soffer and Colin Movsowitz},
journal = {American heart journal plus : cardiology research and practice},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.ahjo.2026.100938},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42894852},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Real-world impact of coronary artery calcium scoring on primary prevention management in a community cardiology practice.
AU - Fahdem Iamrl
AU - Matthew Sangoi
AU - Douglas Jacoby
AU - Daniel E Soffer
AU - Colin Movsowitz
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/06
JO - American heart journal plus : cardiology research and practice
DO - 10.1016/j.ahjo.2026.100938
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42894852
AB - Study objective To evaluate the impact of coronary artery calcium (CAC) scoring on lipid-lowering therapy intensification, aspirin initiation, and downstream cardiac testing in primary prevention patients in a community cardiology setting.Design Retrospective observational study.Setting Single community cardiology practice.Participants Four hundred consecutive patients undergoing CAC scoring in 2022.Interventions CAC scoring used for risk stratification and clinical decision-making.Main outcome measures Changes in lipid-lowering therapy, aspirin initiation, and downstream cardiac testing across CAC categories (0, 1-99, 100-399, ≥400); risk reclassification using Pooled Cohort Equations (PCE) and Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) risk scores.Results Among 400 patients (mean age 60.2 ± 10.6 years; 46.5% male), 30% had CAC = 0, 37% CAC 1-99, 18% CAC 100-399, and 16% CAC ≥400. Lipid therapy modification increased across categories (7.7%, 33.3%, 69.0%, 81.7%; p < 0.001), as did aspirin initiation among aspirin-naive patients (1.0%, 8.0%, 51.9%, 52.5%; p < 0.001) and stress testing (2.7%, 6.5%, 29.0%, 68.6%; p < 0.001). Each one-category CAC increment was independently associated with lipid therapy modification (adjusted OR 4.36, 95% CI 3.13-6.06), aspirin initiation (OR 4.48, 95% CI 2.85-7.03), and stress testing (OR 5.11, 95% CI 3.33-7.84; all p < 0.001). CAC changed MESA risk category in 192/348 patients (55.2%): 87 upward and 105 downward.Conclusions CAC burden was independently associated with graded intensification of lipid-lowering therapy, aspirin initiation, and downstream testing after multivariable adjustment, extending prior descriptive literature with persistent, quantified associations in real-world community practice. Improvement in clinical outcomes cannot be assessed from this retrospective, six-month implementation study.
SN - 2666-6022
ER -