Cardiac Axes

Cardiac Axes

Axial slices through the heart  Cardiac CT with ECG triggering offers good image quality of the heart when compared to CT performed for other purposes. As in any other field of radiology, analysis of the acquired images requires a systematic approach. First of all, it is important to understand that the orientation of the heart in the human body differs from that of other anatomic structures: the right ventricle, for example, does not lie completely on the right, but more anterior. The left ventricle does not lie on the left, but more posterior. Also, the heart does not always maintain the same position within the mediastinum - in young people it tends to have a vertical orientation, whereas in older people it tends to rest on the diaphragm, a more horizontal orientation. Cardiologists analyze the heart using cardiac axes. These axes are also used in cardiac CT/MR and must be reconstructed in order to assess the heart properly. Axial slices, such as those imaged on the above, are useful for a global assessment of the morphology of the heart and its relation to the pericardium.