COMPARISON OF EXERCISE STRESS-TESTING WITH SIMULTANEOUS DOBUTAMINE STRESS ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY AND TC-99M ISONITRILE SINGLE-PHOTON EMISSION COMPUTERIZED-TOMOGRAPHY FOR DIAGNOSIS OF CORONARY-ARTERY DISEASE

The object of our study was to compare the value of exercise stress te sting with simultaneous dobutamine stress echocardiography and technet ium-99m isonitrile single-photon emission computed tomography for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease. Sixty-nine patients with either suspected or proven coronary artery disease underwent simultaneous dob utamine technetium-99m isonitrile single-photon emission computed tomo graphy and stress echocardiography, and treadmill exercise electrocard iography. Dobutamine echocardiography and technetium-99m isonitrile si ngle-photon emission computed tomography revealed a higher overall sen sitivity than exercise testing (94 vs 60%, P<0.001), but dobutamine st ress echocardiography showed a higher specificity than both technetium -99m isonitrile single-photon emission computed tomography and exercis e testing (86 vs 64%, P<.005, for both tests). In addition, the diagno stic accuracy of dobutamine stress echocardiography and technetium-99m isonitrile single-photon emission computed tomography was higher than that of exercise testing (91 vs 61%, P<0.001; 86 vs 61%, P<0.001, res pectively). Dobutamine stress echocardiography and technetium-99m ison itrile single-photon emission computed tomography are superior to exer cise testing in the diagnosis of coronary artery disease, and dobutami ne stress echocardiography can act as an alternative to technetium-99m isonitrile single-photon emission computed tomography.