A regional ultrasonic technique to measure left ventricular performance during coronary artery bypass

Miniaturized, highly accurate pressure transducers and segment length measuring devices have been proven a safe, practical and stable method of analyzing cardiac performance in both acute and chronic animal experimentation. We have utilized a micromanometer-tipped intraventricular catheter and an ultrasonic segment length gauge implanted in the subendocardial layer of the left ventricle at the time of cardiac surgery to measure changes in systolic function and diastolic compliance prior to and after the completion of the operative procedure in man. No complications of this technique were encountered in the thirty patients studied. Continuous improvements in instrument design, data collection and data processing suggest future clinical applications are possible and desirable.