QUANTITATIVE ECHOCARDIOGRAPHIC ASSESSMENT OF LEFT-VENTRICULAR FUNCTION IN CRITICALLY ILL OBSTETRIC PATIENTS - A COMPARATIVE-STUDY

OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to compare different echocardiographic meth ods to quantitate maternal ventricular function. STUDY DESIGN: Eleven critically ill obstetric patients requiring invasive monitoring and M- mode and two-dimensional Doppler echocardiographic studies were retros pectively studied. Ventricular volumes and ejection fraction derived f rom multiple methods were computed and compared with analysis of varia nce and Newman-Keuls tests. RESULTS: Two M-mode studies could not be a nalyzed. M-mode and two-dimensional estimates of stroke volume were si milar to the previously validated Doppler stroke volume values of thes e 11 patients. End-diastolic volume estimates were similar. There was no difference in ejection fraction for the five different two-dimensio nal Doppler methods used (66%, 66%, 67%, 63%, and 63%). CONCLUSION: Le ft ventricular function is reliably calculated in pregnant women by a number of different echocardiographic techniques. The ability to combi ne echocardiographic techniques is helpful when any single method does not provide all of the information required.