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[Accuracy and usefulness of ultraportable hand-carried echocardiography system]
1Second Department of Internal Medicine, Yamaguchi University School of Medicine, Minamikogushi 1-1-1, Ube, Yamaguchi 755-8505.
Objectives:
The diagnostic accuracy and usefulness of an ultraportable hand-carried echocardiography system were investigated for assessing ventricular systolic function and severity of mitral valvular regurgitation.
Methods:
The study population consisted of 77 consecutive patients (47 men, 30 women, mean age 63 +/- 15 years). Left ventricular end-diastolic dimension, left ventricular end-systolic dimension and left ventricular ejection fraction were measured using the hand-carried echo system and the data were compared with measurements by the conventional echocardiography system using simple linear regression analysis. Left ventricular wall motion was compared between the systems using a 16-segment model recommended by the American Society of Echocardiography. Severity of mitral regurgitation was assessed by the distance of the regurgitant signal in the left atrium.
Results:
Left ventricular end-diastolic dimension, left ventricular end-systolic dimension and left ventricular ejection fraction showed good correlations between hand-carried and conventional echo systems (r = 0.94, 0.91 and 0.81, respectively; each p < 0.0001). The accuracy for assessing left ventricular wall motion was 94% (449 of 480 segments). The echo systems also showed the same degree of diagnostic accuracy for severity of mitral regurgitation.
Conclusions:
The hand-carried echo system provides accurate assessment of left ventricular function and mitral regurgitation simular to conventional echo machines.