Assessment of valvular heart disease with Doppler echocardiography

Article Abstract:

Doppler echocardiography uses ultrasound to study the anatomy and physiology of the functioning human heart without resorting to invasive techniques. Ultra-high frequency sound waves generated by a hand-held probe penetrate the chest and rebound off of deep structures, and changes in frequency are analyzed to provide a picture of the internal systems. Differences in the velocity of blood can also be detected and the resulting patterns of anatomy and physiology can be superimposed on the screen of a computer. This system has revolutionized the ability of physicians to rapidly, inexpensively, noninvasively, and painlessly acquire important information about a patient's heart and blood vessels. Constrictions of the flow of blood arise from abnormalities of the vessels or their valves, including aortic stenosis, mitral valve stenosis, and pulmonic stenosis; these are easily diagnosed by Doppler methods. Similarly problems with regurgitation, where blood flows in the wrong direction across a valve because the valve does not completely close, of the aortic, mitral, and tricuspid valves, are also easily and accurately identified. Evaluation of artificial or prosthetic heart valves can also be performed by Doppler echocardiography, because even though the anatomy of the structures may be obscured by the inorganic material of the valve (e.g., metal), the direction of the blood flow through the valve can be detected and the function of the artificial valve can be deduced. Invasive techniques such as cardiac catheterization (the placement of a tube deep into the heart under X-ray guidance), which allows a dye to be introduced into the heart and vessels so that its course can be seen in X-ray, have been standard in the past. Echocardiography can now save many patients from the discomfort and added risk of catheterization without depriving the physician of important physiological information.

Usage, Evaluation, Echocardiography, Arterial catheterization, Heart valves, Diagnosis, Ultrasonic, Diagnostic ultrasonography

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Doppler sonographic imaging of the vascular system: report of the Ultrasonography Task Force

Article Abstract:

A report is presented from the Council on Scientific Affairs of the American Medical Association concerning Doppler sonography, a noninvasive imaging technique that uses high-frequency sound to produce images of blood vessels and blood flow. An ultrasound beam is directed at the area of interest; it uses a physical effect known as the Doppler shift (a change in pitch recognized by a stationary detector as the sound waves are deflected by the moving blood) to calculate blood velocity and anatomy. The review covers the principal uses of Doppler sonography. It is applied to the carotid and vertebral arteries (two sets of paired arteries that carry blood to the brain), and is used to evaluate blood vessel flow in infants, and in adults who may suffer hemorrhages in the meninges (the membranes surrounding the brain) or narrowing of arteries in the brain. It is also used to detect blockages in the peripheral vascular system (blood vessels in the arms and legs). Other applications include evaluation of certain kinds of masses or tumors; diagnosis of the causes of testicular pain; imaging of the peripheral venous system to detect deep clots in veins; imaging of vessels and pulsatile (pulsating) masses in the abdomen; evaluation of liver vessels in several liver diseases and in transplantation; imaging of kidneys after transplantation; and in high-risk pregnancies, where it is used to examine the placenta, the circulation between fetus and placenta, and the uterus. New applications of Doppler sonography for imaging the vascular system continue to be developed. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Reports, Blood flow, Measurement, Blood flow measurement, Blood vessels

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Passive smoking and the risk of heart disease

Article Abstract:

Seven out of nine studies of the effect of exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke -- so-called passive smoking -- on heart disease found a higher risk of heart disease in non-smokers living with smokers than in non-smokers living with non-smokers. One study found a higher rate of heart disease in non-smoking women living with smoking men, but not in non-smoking men living with smoking women. Based on data from these studies, approximately 35,000 to 40,000 people died from coronary heart disease during the early 1980s due to exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke.

Health aspects, Environmental aspects, Heart diseases, Passive smoking

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