Clinical application of real time three dimensional transesophageal echocardiography / 中华超声影像学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the feasibility and clinical application of real-time threedimensional transesophageal echocardiography(RT3D-TEE). Methods Fifty-nine patients with various heart diseases were examined or monitored by RT3D-TEE.Among them,20 patients with different kinds of arrhythmias,24 patients with valvular heart diseases, 12 patients with congenital heart diseases,2 patients with aortic dissection, 1 with unexplained pulmonary hypertension. Results RT3D-TEE was performed successfully in all the patients with good image quality and the normal tissues as well as diseased cardiac structures were distinctly displayed.Conclusions RT3D-TEE is a safe and reliable new technique which can be applied in the patients with poor acoustic window and may be a powerful tool in the intraoperative monitoring.RT3D-TEE is also an important supplement to real time three dimensional transthoracic echocardiography and makes it possible for the first time to monitor the cardiac operation with RT3D-TEE without interrupting the operation procedure.