Quantitation of regional ventricular asynergy using real-time two-dimensional echocardiography

Real-time two-dimensional echocardiography was used to identify and quantitate regional left ventricular dysfunction in 12 patients with coronary artery disease. THe extent of regional ventricular asynergy was expressed as the percentage of the left ventricular circumference contracting abnormally. The findings were compared with those obtained from cardiac catheterization and left ventriculography. The severity and extent of echocardiographic asynergy correlated closely with that observed on the angiocardiogram (r = 0.96, P less than 0.001). There was also a significant relationship between echocardiographic and angiocardiographic ventricular volume (r = 0.81, P less than 0.001) and ejection fraction (r = 0.79, P less than 0.01). Real-time two-dimensional echocardiography provided a useful noninvasive technique for the identification and quantitation of the extent of regional ventricular dysfunction.