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The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Vol 104, 1158-1166, Copyright © 1992 by The American Association for Thoracic Surgery and The Western Thoracic Surgical Association

ARTICLES

Assessment of regional and transmural myocardial perfusion by means of intraoperative myocardial contrast echocardiography during coronary artery bypass grafting

N Hirata, S Nakano, K Taniguchi, M Kaneko, R Matsuwaka, T Takahashi, K Sakai, Y Shimazaki, H Matsuda and Y Kawashima
First Department of Surgery, Osaka University Medical School, Japan.

By using intraoperative myocardial contrast echocardiography, we assessed regional myocardial perfusion and transmural blood flow distribution immediately after myocardial revascularization. A total of 62 revascularized myocardial areas were studied in 31 patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting. The revascularized areas were divided into three different areas: S area, supplied by significantly stenosed coronary arteries (43 areas); C area, supplied by coronary collateral situation associated with totally occluded coronary arteries (12 areas); MI area, preexisting transmural myocardial infarction (7 areas). Myocardial contrast echocardiography was obtained by direct injection of 2 ml of sonicated 5% human albumin into the saphenous vein grafts at rest and during atrial pacing. Each area was divided into two layers of endocardial and epicardial halves, and myocardial enhancement of peak intensity was measured for each half and endocardial/epicardial gray level ratio was calculated: (1) The peak intensity of myocardial enhancement in S area and C area was significantly higher than that in MI area at rest as well as during pacing after myocardial revascularization. There was no significant difference in the peak intensity between S area and C area both at rest and during pacing. In S area the peak intensity significantly increased during pacing (p < 0.01), whereas it did not change in C area and MI area. (2) S area demonstrated no significant change in endocardial/epicardial intensity ratio during pacing. In contrast, the ratio in C area significantly decreased during pacing. (3) In S area with preoperative percent increase of segmental wall thickening lower than 25%, there was a significant correlation (r = 0.84, p < 0.001) between the peak intensity of myocardial enhancement and the postoperative changes of percent increase of segmental wall thickening in the revascularized areas. Thus, immediately after myocardial revascularization, intraoperative myocardial contrast echocardiography could provide a quantitative assessment of regional myocardial perfusion as well as blood flow distribution in the areas with myocardial infarction and with coronary collateral situation and in the areas supplied by stenosed coronary arteries.

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