INFRARED THERMOGRAPHY IN THE DETECTION AND MANAGEMENT OF CORONARY-ARTERY DISEASE

Infrared thermography was used to measure and map precordial skin temp erature in 60 patients undergoing elective coronary angiography; 9 pat ients were normal and 51 had coronary artery ease (CAD). Thermograms w ere graded by quartile area (zero to 4 plus) and magnitude of thermal asymmetry (recorded as degrees celsius). The presence, mean area and d egree of thermal asymmetry were significantly greater in patients with CAD. Twenty-two patients subsequently underwent successful revascular ization with angioplasty with a highly significant decrease in the pre sence, magnitude and degree of thermal asymmetry. The results demonstr ate that CAD is associated with precordial thermal asymmetry. The area and magnitude of thermal asymmetry is greater in patients with CAD th an in control subjects without angiographically significant CAD Succes sful revascularization changed the asymmetric precordial pattern to a more symmetric one. Infrared thermography is a promising technique for the detection of CAD before and revascularization.