Journal of cardiology
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Journal of cardiology · Sep 1988
[Atrial septal defect diagnosed and quantitatively-evaluated by transesophageal two-dimensional Doppler echocardiography].
Transesophageal two-dimensional (2-D) echocardiography (TEE: horizontal sector scan) combined with the pulsed Doppler method was performed to determine the size of atrial septal defect (ASD) and to measure directly shunt flow signals through the defects in six ASD patients (32 +/- 16 yrs) confirmed by cardiac catheterization. The size of the defect in the horizontal dimension was measured by TEE; the vertical dimension of the defect was determined from the distance of the transesophageal probe positions of the rostral and caudal margins of the defect. The size of defect determined by TEE was compared with that observed at surgery. ⋯ A clear laminar shunt flow with its peak in late systole and atrial systole was observed. Significant correlations were obtained between shunt volumes by TEE and those by the Fick's method (r = 0.91, p less than 0.05). Thus, TEE proved a useful method for diagnosing ASD and for evaluating shunt flow volumes.