Cardiovascular Ultrasound - Latest articlesThe latest articles from Cardiovascular Ultrasound (ISSN 1476-7120) published by BioMed CentralUnderstanding atrioventricular septal defect. Anatomoechocardiographic correlation- June 24, 2008 ObjectiveCorrelate the anatomic features of atrioventricular septal defect with echocardiographic images.Material and methodsSixty specimen hearts were studied by sequential segmental analysis. Echocardiograms were performed on 34 patients. Specimen hearts with findings equivalent to those of echocardiographic images were selected in order to establish an anatomo-echocardiographic correlation. Results: Thirty-three specimen hearts were in situs solitus, 19 showed dextroisomerism, 6 were in...http://www.cardiovascularultrasound.com/content/6/1/33 Sequentially based analysis versus image based analysis of Intima Media Thickness in common carotid arteries studies - Do major IMT studies underestim- June 20, 2008 Background: Image-based B-mode ultrasound has gained popularity in major studies as a non-invasive method of measuring cardio- and cerebrovascular risk factors. However, none of the major studies appears to have paid sufficient attention to the variation in end diastolic wall process. By using sequentially based analyses (SBA) of Intima-Media Thickness (IMT), the general purpose of this study was to show that the current image based (ECG tracked) analysis (IBA) has some major variations and...http://www.cardiovascularultrasound.com/content/6/1/32 Head to head comparison of 2D vs real time 3D dipyridamole stress echocardiography- June 20, 2008 Real-time three-dimensional (RT-3D) echocardiography has entered the clinical practice but true incremental value over standard two-dimensional echocardiography (2D) remains uncertain in stress echo. The aim of the present study is to establish the additional value of RT-3D stress echo over standard 2D stress echocardiography. We evaluated 23 consecutive patients (age = 6510 years, 16 men) referred for dipyridamole stress echocardiography with Sonos 7500 (Philips Medical Systems, Palo,...http://www.cardiovascularultrasound.com/content/6/1/31 The diagnostic accuracy of pharmacological stress echocardiography for the assessment of coronary artery disease: a meta-analysis- June 19, 2008 Background: Recent American Heart AssociationAmerican College of Cardiology guidelines state that "dobutamine stress echo has substantially higher sensitivity than vasodilator stress echo for detection of coronary artery stenosis" while the European Society of Cardiology guidelines and the European Association of Echocardiography recommendations conclude that "the two tests have very similar applications". Who is rightAimTo evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of dobutamine...http://www.cardiovascularultrasound.com/content/6/1/30 Hyperthyroidism as a reversible cause of right ventricular overload and congestive heart failure- June 12, 2008 We describe a case of severe congestive heart failure and right ventricular overload associated with overt hyperthyroidism, completely reversed with antithyroid therapy in a few week. It represents a very unusual presentation of overt hyperthyroidism because of the severity of right heart failure. The impressive right ventricular volume overload made mandatory to perform transesophageal echo and angio-TC examination to exclude the coexistence of ASD or anomalous pulmonary venous return. Only a..http://www.cardiovascularultrasound.com/content/6/1/29 Circumferential 2D-strain imaging for the prediction of long term response to cardiac resynchronization therapy- June 6, 2008 Background: Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy (CRT) leads to hemodynamic and clinical improvement in heart failure patients. The established methods to evaluate myocardial asynchrony analyze longitudinal and radial myocardial function. This study evaluates the new method of circumferential 2D-strain imaging in the prediction of the long-term response to CRT.Methods and results38 heart failure patients (NYHA II-III, QRS > 120 ms, LVEF < 0.35) received CRT and echocardiographic evaluation...http://www.cardiovascularultrasound.com/content/6/1/28 Myocardial involvement during the early course of type 2 diabetes mellitus: usefulness of Myocardial Performance Index- June 5, 2008 To evaluate whether myocardial performance index detects a subclinical impairment of left ventricular systolic and diastolic function in patients with early stage of type 2 diabetes, without coronary artery disease, with or without hypertension. Furthermore, to evaluate whether some echocardiographic parameters relate to the metabolic control. Fourty-five consecutive male patients (mean age 52.5 years) with type 2 diabetes mellitus of recent onset (23 hypertensives and 22 normotensives) and 22..http://www.cardiovascularultrasound.com/content/6/1/27 Assessment of left ventricular volumes using simplified 3-D echocardiography and computed tomography a phantom and clinical study- June 4, 2008 ObjectivesTo compare the accuracy of simplified 3-dimensional (3-D) echocardiography vs. multi-slice computed tomography (MSCT) software for the quantification of left ventricular (LV) volumes.DesignThree-D echocardiography (3-planes approach) and MSCT-CardIQ software were calibrated by measuring known volumes of 10 phantoms designed to closely mimic blood-endocardium interface. Subsequently, LV volumes were measured with both the methods in 9 patients referred routinely for coronary...http://www.cardiovascularultrasound.com/content/6/1/26 |