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Doppler tissue echocardiography: can transesophageal echocardiography be used to acquire functional data?
Michael M H Cheung1, Jia Li, Paul A White
1Division of Cardiology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Background:
To date there is no direct comparison of transesophageal and transthoracic Doppler tissue data in patients with cardiac malposition. We compared data acquired from both methods in an animal model.
Method:
We studied 10 15-kg Yorkshire pigs during incremental atrial pacing to modify myocardial responses. Peak isovolumic velocity (IVV) and isovolumic acceleration (IVA) during isovolumic contraction, ejection (S wave), and diastolic velocities (early passive and active filling, E and A wave, respectively) were measured.
Results:
Bland-Altman plots showed comparable values for IVA, IVV, and E velocity using both methods. Measurements of A velocities were significantly different. S wave velocity measurements were significantly different in animals with cardiac malposition but not in those with levocardia. Malposition did not significantly effect measurements of IVA or IVV by either technique.
Conclusion:
Assessment of systolic function using the indices IVA and IVV by tranesophageal and transthoracic echocardiography are comparable. The tranesophageal assessment of velocities associated with greater degrees of myocardial shortening or lengthening cannot be directly compared with measurements derived from a transthoracic approach in patients with cardiac malposition.