Search results for " echocardiography."

Percutaneous closure of left atrial appendage to prevent embolic events in high-risk patients with chronic atrial fibrillation

2009

Background: Percutaneous closure of the left atrial appendage (LAA) is a novel alternative for the treatment of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and with a high risk of stroke who are not eligible for long-term anticoagulation therapy. The aim of this study was to asses the safety, feasibility, and long-term efficacy of this procedure. Methods: From July 2004 to June 2007, 20 patients (13 male, mean age 69 ± 8 years) with non–valvular AF (NV-AF) underwent LAA percutaneous closure using the PLAATO™ system, implanted through a transeptal access. All patients had contraindications to anticoagulant therapy and were at high risk for cardioembolic stroke (mean CHADS2 score 3 ± 1.2). A trans…

Transcatheter Mitral Valve Repair: Single Stage Combo Approach

2019

Dobutamine stress Doppler echocardiography: reproducibility and physiologic left ventricular filling patterns

1997

Qualitatively, dobutamine stress echocardiography has become an established procedure. Quantitative results are in great demand but this is still difficult due to limited endo- and epicardial border definition. Transmitral Doppler variables are strictly quantitative and less subjective. Furthermore, ischemic alterations precede systolic ones (ischemic cascade). There are preliminary reports of the utility of dobutamine stress Doppler echocardiography, but proof of reproducibility and left ventricular filling patterns are still lacking. Fourteen healthy volunteers (10 men, 4 women, median age 25.9 years, range 21-32 years) were investigated according to the usual dobutamine stress echocardio…

Analysis of myocardial perfusion or myocardial function for detection of regional myocardial abnormalities. An echocardiographic multicenter comparis…

2007

Background: Echocardiography based myocardial perfusion imaging and regional wall motion analysis are used for evaluation of coronary artery disease and regional myocardial abnormalities. Aim: This study sought to compare myocardial contrast echocardiography (MCE) and 2D echocardiography with regard to interobserver variability and detection of regional myocardial abnormalities. Methods: In 70 patients evenly distributed between three ejection fraction groups based on biplane cineventriculography (>55%, 35-55%, <35%), unenhanced and contrast enhanced 2D echocardiography and myocardial contrast echocardiography (MCE; SonoVue (R); Bracco) were performed. Regional watt motion and myocardial pe…

Comparison of Two- and Three-Dimensional Unenhanced and Contrast-Enhanced Echocardiographies Versus Cineventriculography Versus Cardiac Magnetic Reso…

2013

Contrast enhancement has been shown to improve detection of regional wall motion abnormalities (RWMA) in 2-dimensional (2D) echocardiography. This study determined the use of contrast enhancement in the setting of 3-dimensional (3D) echocardiography for definition of left ventricular RWMA compared with 2D echocardiography, cineventriculography, and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). In 63 patients, unenhanced and contrast-enhanced (SonoVue; Bracco Imaging S.p.A., Milan, Italy) 2D and 3D echocardiographies, CMR, and cineventriculography were performed. Hypokinesia in ≥1 segment defined the presence of RWMA. Interreader agreement (IRA) between 2 blinded off-site readers on presence of RWMA was…

Evidence of impaired left ventricular systolic function by Doppler myocardial imaging in patients with systemic amyloidosis and no evidence of cardia…

2007

We examined the potential role of Doppler myocardial imaging for early detection of systolic dysfunction in patients with systemic amyloidosis (AL) but without evidence of cardiac involvement by standard echocardiography. We identified 42 patients without 2-dimensional echocardiographic or Doppler evidence of cardiac involvement. These patients had normal ventricular wall thickness and normal velocity of the medial mitral annulus. Myocardial images were obtained in these patients and in 32 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. Peak longitudinal systolic tissue velocity (sTVI), systolic strain rate (sSR), and systolic strain (sS) were determined for 16 left ventricular segments. Radial a…

Pulmonary vascular resistance versus pulmonary artery pressure for predicting right ventricular remodeling and functional tricuspid regurgitation.

2018

BACKGROUND Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a common cause of right ventricular (RV) remodeling and functional tricuspid regurgitation (FTR), but incremental pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP) does not always correlate with anatomic and functional RV changes. This study aimed to evaluate a noninvasive measure of pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) for predicting RV dilatation, RV dysfunction, and severity of FTR. METHODS We prospectively analyzed consecutive stable patients with PASP ≥ 35 mm Hg or any degree of RV dilatation or dysfunction secondary to PH. Noninvasive PVR was calculated based on FTR peak velocity and flow in RV outflow tract. RESULTS We included 251 patients, aged 72.1…

Immediate effect of the MitraClip procedure on mitral ring geometry in primary and secondary mitral regurgitation.

2013

Percutaneous treatment of mitral regurgitation (MR) has been shown to reduce MR severity and improve functional outcomes. Surgical treatment of MR usually includes mitral annulus reduction. The influence of the MitraClip w on annulus geometry is not clear. We wanted to investigate whether the procedure itself reduces annulus diameter and if there may be differences between secondary or functional (SMR) and primary (PMR) MR. Methods and results We retrospectively assessed 3D echocardiography (3D-TEE) data of 55 patients acquired during the procedure shortly before and after clip placement for changes in annulus diameter and area. Measurements were done with QLAB software. Patients were categ…

Apparent Declining Prognostic Value of a Negative Stress Echocardiography Based on Regional Wall Motion Abnormalities in Patients With Normal Resting…

2019

Background: Cardiology guidelines identify the low-risk response during stress echocardiography as the absence of regional wall motion abnormalities. Methods: From 1983 to 2016, we enrolled 5817 patients (age 63±12 years; 2830 males) with suspected coronary artery disease, normal regional, and global left ventricular function at rest and during stress (exercise in 692, dipyridamole in 4291, and dobutamine in 834). Based on timing of enrollment, 4 groups were identified in chronological order of recruitment: years 1983 to 1989, group 1 (n=211); years 1990 to 1999, group 2 (n=1491); years 2000 to 2009, group 3 (n=3285); and years 2010 to 2016, group 4 (n=830). Results: There were 240 (4%) ev…

Role of cardiac computed tomography in the evaluation of coronary artery stenosis in patients with ascending aorta aneurysm detected at transthoracic…

2016

OBJECTIVE The aim of our study was to evaluate the diagnostic performance of cardiac computed tomography (CCT) in the evaluation of coronary artery stenosis in patients with ascending aorta aneurysm detected at transthoracic echocardiography. METHODS We conducted a retrospective analysis of patients with an aneurysm 45 mm or greater at transthoracic echocardiography who underwent CCT from 2012 to 2014 in our hospital. We calculated the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of CCT for the assessment of coronary artery stenosis (<50% or ≥50% stenosis) in patients who underwent conventional coronary angiography. RESULTS We included 104 patients (73 men, aged 64 …