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[Radiological findings in endomyocardial fibrosis]
F Fernandes1, C Mady, C de B Vianna
1Instituto do Coração, Hospital das Clínicas, FMUSP.
Arquivos Brasileiros De Cardiologia
|April 1, 1997
Summary
Conventional radiology effectively identifies ventricular involvement in endomyocardial fibrosis (EMF), aiding initial diagnosis. Chest X-rays can determine the type of EMF involvement in most cases.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Radiology
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- Endomyocardial fibrosis (EMF) is a rare form of heart disease.
- Understanding the pattern of ventricular involvement is crucial for diagnosis and management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To ascertain the patterns of ventricular involvement in endomyocardial fibrosis (EMF) using conventional radiology.
- To evaluate the diagnostic utility of chest X-rays in identifying EMF-related cardiac changes.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 56 confirmed endomyocardial fibrosis cases via angiocardiography and 9 postmortem studies.
- Retrospective review of chest X-rays by a single radiologist blinded to angiocardiographic findings.
Main Results:
- Right-sided EMF (9 cases) presented with globular cardiac silhouette and oligemic pulmonary fields (66.66%).
- Left-sided EMF (11 cases) mimicked rheumatic mitral disease with increased pulmonary fields (63.6%).
- Biventricular involvement (36 cases) showed varied pulmonary field patterns and an elevated cardiothoracic ratio.
Conclusions:
- Conventional radiology, particularly chest X-ray, is fundamental for the initial diagnosis of endomyocardial fibrosis.
- Radiological assessment can accurately determine the type of ventricular involvement in a significant majority of EMF cases (66.07%).