Investigation of left ventricular function by digital subtraction angiography

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Imaging
• Interventional Cardiology
• Diagnostic Radiology

Background:

• Coronary artery disease diagnosis often involves invasive procedures.
• Assessing left ventricular function is crucial for patient management.
• Conventional methods may require hospitalization or have limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of digital subtraction angiography (DSA) for outpatient left ventriculography.
• To compare DSA-assessed left ventricular function with conventional methods.
• To determine DSA's reliability in differentiating resectable lesions from global impairment.

Main Methods:

• Outpatient left ventriculography using DSA in 25 patients with suspected coronary artery disease.
• Percutaneous catheter introduction into the superior vena cava with contrast medium injection.
• Recording left ventriculograms in the 30-degree right anterior oblique projection.

Main Results:

• Diagnostic images were obtained in all cases without complications requiring hospital admission.
• Agreement was observed between DSA and conventional methods for assessing left ventricular wall motion.
• Left ventricular function was categorized as normal, globally hypokinetic, or aneurysmal.

Conclusions:

• Digital subtraction angiography provides a reliable and safe outpatient assessment of left ventricular function.
• DSA effectively distinguishes between patients with potentially resectable lesions and those with global functional impairment.
• This technique supports informed clinical decision-making in suspected coronary artery disease.