CONTRAST ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY

Myocardial contrast echocardiography (MCE) is an ultrasound imaging te chnique which promises to provide a safe, noninvasive means of assessi ng myocardial perfusion. A contrast agent, consisting of a suspension of air-filled microspheres, serves as an ultrasound tracer. When these microspheres are injected intravascularly, the acoustic interface cre ated between the blood and the microspheres enhances the reflected ult rasound signals. Thus, the how pattern of the microspheres represent t he actual blood flow patterns. This paper will review the field of con trast echocardiography, its background and history, the development of ultrasound contrast agents, and a variety of experimental as well as clinical uses. Contrast echocardiography has been utilized in the card iac catheterization laboratory for the assessment of ''risk area,'' as sessment of collateral blood how and assessment of coronary blood rese rve. In the operating room, contrast echo is utilized for the determin ation of cardioplegic perfusion, assessment of graft patency and evalu ation of valvular regurgitation. In the future, with the technical adv ancement in ultrasound imaging and the active interest and growth in t he field of myocardial perfusion imaging using contrast echocardiograp hy, the ability to provide routine real-time perfusion imaging may bec ome a reality.