Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) is the first hospital in Georgia to provide a new test that can better predict if you have coronary artery disease and need a cardiac catheterization to restore blood flow to your heart.

The new test - called HeartFlow Analysis - takes data from a CT scan of a patient's heart and uses it to create a 3D model of the coronary arteries. It then uses powerful computer algorithms to simulate blood flow and assess the impact of blockages on blood flow to the heart. NGMC's cardiac imaging team began performing the HeartFlow Analysis in April and has performed more than 60 tests to date - the most of any healthcare provider in the state. With Georgia's largest cardiac imaging team specially trained to utilize HeartFlow Analysis, NGMC performs the highest number of HeartFlow Analyses per month.

"Historically, most non-invasive tests are not very precise to assess for blockages and blood flow in the heart arteries - so patients often ended up having invasive cardiac catheterization just to determine if they needed a second procedure to put in a stent or perform angioplasty," said Ioannis Parastatidis, MD, PhD, noninvasive cardiologist at The Heart Center of NGMC. "This new analysis is a game-changer that helps us determine the right approach for each patient and avoid the physical and monetary cost of unnecessary procedures."

Nationally, HeartFlow Analysis has already been used for more than 30,000 patients with suspected heart disease.