Consequence of diseases in aorta on evaluation of aortic regurgitation by aortic flow velocity profiles

The aim of the study was to investigate whether flow velocity profiles of the aorta are related to the severity of aortic valve regurgitation (AR) in patients with diseases of the aorta. Aortic root angiography, abdominal aortic flow velocity measurements by pulsed Doppler method, and regurgitant jet measurements by color Doppler echocardiography were performed in 62 patients with various etiologies of AR and 13 patients without AR. The regurgitant fraction of abdominal aortic flow velocity profiles was related to the angiographic severity of AR except for the patients with Takayasu's arteritis and those after thoracic aorta grafting who showed large regurgitant fraction regardless of AR. Color Doppler evaluation was also correlated well with angiographic findings, but it was not possible in 13 of 62 patients with AR because of the inadequate color Doppler images. Although the observation of abdominal aortic flow profiles is clinically of value in noninvasive evaluation of AR, it could not be applied in patients with Takayasu's arteritis and those after graft surgery.