Use of adenosine echocardiography for diagnosis of coronary artery disease

Two-dimensional echocardiography combined with exercise is sensitive and specific in the detection of coronary artery disease (CAD) by demonstrating transient abnormalities in wall motion. Frequently, however, patients cannot achieve maximal exercise because of various factors. Pharmacologic stress testing with intravenous adenosine was evaluated as a means of detecting CAD in a noninvasive manner. Patients with suspected CAD underwent echocardiographic imaging and simultaneous thallium 201 single-photon emission computed tomography during the intravenous administration of 140 micrograms/kg/min of adenosine. An increase in heart rate, decrease in blood pressure, and increase in double product were observed during adenosine administration. Initial observations revealed that wall motion abnormalities were induced by adenosine in areas of perfusion defects. The adenosine infusion was well tolerated, and symptoms disappeared within 1 to 2 minutes after termination of the infusion. Therefore preliminary observations suggest that adenosine echocardiography appears to be useful in the assessment of CAD.