Echocardiographic identification of the mitral valve prolapse syndrome

H: Principles of echocardiography.

Ultrasound

Am J Med 62: 805-812,

Imaging

1977.

disease

Echographic

Echocardiogram abnormalities

identification

of the

imaging

of patients with mitral stenosis.

Hypertrophic outflow obstruction

cardiomyopathy Systolic anterior motion

obstructive

Echocardiography is a useful noninvasive technic in the diagnosis of hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy. The salient diagnostic features include (1) a narrow left ventricular outflow space, (2) asymmetric hypertrophy of interventricular septum and (3) systolic anterior motion of the mitral valve. The potentials for a false diagnosis are virtually nonexistent when all three findings are present. Additional abnormalities include an adynamic interventricular septum, reduced diastolic slope of anterior mitral valve and aortic valve preclosure.

Shah PM with the technical assistance of Sylvester LJ: Echocardiography in the diagnosis of hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy. Am J Med 62: 830-835, 1977.

Left ventricular

Echocardiography

M-mode echocardiography is the most sensitive and specific noninvasive method available for diagnosing mitral stenosis. Cross-sectional echocardiography provides a method for measuring the mitral valve orifice area that rivals and may surpass any other technic, including cardiac catheterization. Both of these technics have the major advantage of being able to be used for serial evaluation of patients before and after operation; hence, they are valuable assets to the clinician who is managing a patient with mitral stenosis.

evaluation

Mitral orifice area

M-mode echocardiography

Henry WL, Kastl DG: Echocardiographic Am J Med 62: 813-818. 1977.

Cross-sectional

Mitral stenosis

Continued on page A72

The data presented herein would indicate that mitral valve prolapse may be represented by a variable spectrum of abnormalities on the echocardiogram. Utilizing all the abnormalities described, echographic evidence of mitral valve prolapse may be detected in most patients with this disorder. However, evidence of mitral valve prolapse may also be observed in a large contingent of asymptomatic patients without other clinical manifestations of cardiac disease. The biologic significance of these echographic abnormalities remains uncertain and constitutes an important area for future investigation.

DeMaria AN, Neumann A, Lee G. Mason DT: Echocardiographic mitral valve prolapse syndrome. Am J Med 62: 819-829, 1977.

Cardiac

Mitral valve prolapse syndrome

Echocardiography is basically a diagnostic procedure whereby images of the heart are produced using ultrasound. It can be considered a natural means of sensing one’s environment in that this basic technic is used by several animals as sonar. The manner in which the images are created is in many ways similar to light. With the standard M-mode examination one obtains a onedimensional view of the heat-l whereby distance is plotted against time on a strip chart recorder. Cross-sectional or two-dimensional echocardiography plots distance against distance, and one more accurately recreates a spatially oriented heart on either movie film or videotape. All the available data thus far indicate that echocardiography offers very little, if any, hazard to the patient.

Feigenbaum

Echocardiography