value of transesophageal echocardiography in the assessment of the degree of mitral regurgitation

ABSTRACT

Accurate evaluation of the severity of mitral regurgitation [MR] is of paramount importance for decision making for a patient who may undergo heart surgery. This study was aimed to evaluating the accuracy of transesophageal echocardiography [TEE] in the assessment of the severity of MR. Fifty patients with different grades and etiologies of MR underwent clinical examination, electrocardiography, plain X- ray, transthoracic echocardiography [TTE] and TEE. Left ventriculography was also performed as a gold standard to estimate the degree of MR. Sensitivity and specificity of TEE and TTE in the assessment of the different grades of MR were calculated using left ventriculography as a gold standard. The relationship between the maximum mosaic jet area of MR by TTE and TEE showed a significant difference with a good correlation. It was concluded that TEE is a highly sensitive and specific technique not only in detection of MR, but also in evaluating its severity