Dynamic three-dimensional visualization of the left ventricle by intracardiac echocardiography

Cardiac function and hemodynamics are routinely evaluated during catheterization in patients with heart disease. Although intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) has been employed in guiding electrophysiology procedures, it has not been effectively used in assessing hemodynamics. We tested the utility of ICE in measuring left ventricular (LV) volume throughout the cardiac cycle. In four normal dogs (weight = 26 to 37 kg), a 10-F sheath was inserted through the femoral artery and placed inside the LV along its major axis. An ICE catheter (9 F, 9 MHz) was then inserted through the sheath into the LV. The ICE catheter was pulled back inside the sheath in 1-mm intervals starting from the apex, and 2-D tomographic images were continuously acquired while gating to respiration. Subsequently, the ICE catheter was replaced by a conductance catheter to measure single-beat volume signals. Stroke volume was determined by thermodilution for validation. All measurements were made in each dog while pacing the atrium at two different cycle lengths (range = 300 to 500 ms). The endocardial boundary was digitized from the ICE images throughout the cardiac cycle and LV volume was computed by integrating multiple segments along the major axis (range = 55 to 70 mm). We found that ICE accurately reconstructed LV 3-D anatomy. Stroke volume by ICE was in excellent agreement with thermodilution (error = 3.8 +/- 3.0%, r = 0.99, n = 8) and was highly reproducible. Morphology of LV volume signals correlated well with corresponding instantaneous volume signals derived by conductance (r = 0.93, n = 8). In conclusion, ICE accurately reconstructs LV anatomy and volume throughout the cardiac cycle in the normal heart. This approach could facilitate interventional diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.