Heart scan surprise: does a simple notification boost lifesaving treatment?
NCT ID NCT05858879
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study looked at 233 people with heart or blood vessel disease who had calcium buildup in their heart arteries found by chance on a chest CT scan. Researchers wanted to see if telling both the patient and their doctor about this finding would encourage them to start cholesterol-lowering medication. The goal was to improve treatment rates in people who were not already on such therapy.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
-
233 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
-
Oct 2024
- Finished
-
Mar 2026
- Lead sponsor
-
Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
-
18 to 84 years
- Sex
-
Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
-
Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. Presence of CAC on non-gated chest CT scans performed from 2021 to 2025 2. Age \<85 years 3. Diagnosis of ASCVD(coronary artery disease, peripheral artery disease, or cerebrovascular disease) 4. Visit to Stanford affiliated clinician since 2022 at one of the following Stanford clinics including University affiliated clinics: 1. Internal Medicine 2. Family Medicine 3. Cardiology 4. Neurology 5. Vascular surgery 5. Primary language is English or Spanish Exclusion Criteria: 1. No diagnosis of ASCVD 2. Patients receiving lipid-lowering therapy 3. Dementia 4. Metastatic cancer or active cancer undergoing chemotherapy 5. Hospice
Get updates
Get notified about this study
Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for ASCVD are added.
Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
Stanford University
Stanford, California, 94304, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Tracking blood markers over time may reveal hidden heart risk
- AI could turn routine chest scans into heart risk warnings
- Do complex heart procedures expose patients to more harmful radiation and contrast?
- Can sound waves crush artery calcium and save hearts?
- Hidden heart risks in testicular cancer survivors: a closer look at chemotherapy's long shadow
- Phone coach after heart attack may slash cholesterol and save lives