Usefulness of previsualization of the cardiac venous system by 64-slice computed tomography in patients with heart failure underwent cardiac resynchronization therapy / 中华心血管病杂志

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the value of 64-slice computed tomography (MDCT) in previsualization the cardiac veins anatomy before the implantation of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The 64-slice CT scans of 21 patients [10 men, age (61.6 ± 9.7) years] were obtained and analyzed before the implantation of CRT. Retrograde coronary venography was performed during intraoperational fluoroscopy. The coronary sinus (CS) and the main tributaries were measured.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Similar images to those obtained during the CRT implantation procedure were obtained by MDCT in 71% of the patients. The coronary sinus was clearly visible in all cases, the measured ostium was (12.1 ± 4.2) mm, and the angle between the CS and the vertical plane was (99 ± 12) degrees. In 90% of patients, at least one vein was clearly visible in the target area. Among the target veins, the posterolateral vein was visible in most cases (86%) and the lateral vein was visible in 48% of the patients.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>MDCT is an effective and noninvasive method for previsualization of the cardiac venous system, which may facilitate optimal left ventricular lead positioning for CRT implantation.</p>