Assessment of diagnostic imaging technologies for cardiovascular disease

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in industrialized countries. In the Netherlands approximately 50,000 patients die each year from cardiovascular disease, which is 35% of all deaths 1. In the United States, this number is over 930,000 patients per year 2. Cardiovascular disease includes all diseases of the heart or blood vessels. This thesis concentrates on arterial stenosis in the cardiovascular system, specifically in the coronary arteries, the carotid arteries, the peripheral arteries, and the renal arteries. Arterial stenosis in these areas may lead to severe morbidity due to, for example, myocardial infarction, stroke, limb amputation, or renal dysfunction, and thus has an enormous impact on the quality of life of the patient and may lead to death3-6. Therefore, it is important to diagnose cardiovascular disease accurately, so that adequate treatment can be initiated.