new echo-cardiographic approach in assessing pulmonary vascular bed in patients with congenital heart disease

ABSTRACT

We thought to test whether the ratio of peak tricuspid regurgitant velocity [TRV, m/sec], to the right ventricular out flow tract time-velocity integral [TVIRVOT, Cm/sec] obtained by Doppler echocardiogrophy [TRV/TVI[RVOT]] provides a clinically reliable method to determine pulmonary vascular resistance [PVR]. Simultaneous Doppler echocadiographic examination and right-heart catheterization were performed in 25 patients. The ratio of TRV/TVI[RVOT] was then correlated with invasive PVR measurements using regression analysis. An equation was modeled to calculate PVR in wood units [WU], using echocardiography, and the results were compared with invasive PVR measurement using the Bland-Altman analysis. As calculated by Doppler echocardiography, TRV/TVI[RVOT] results correlated well [r=0.92] with invasive. PVR measurements the Bland-Altman analysis between PVR obtained invasively and that by echo cardiography, using the equation PVR=TRV/TVI[RVOT] x 10 + 0.16, showed satisfactory limits of agreement. Doppler echocardiography may provide a reliable, non invasive method to determine PVR