Pseudoaneurysm and ventricular septal rupture complicated with inferior myocardial infarction diagnosed by two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography: case report.

A 72-year-old woman with inferior myocardial infarction presented with both a pseudoaneurysm and a ventricular septal rupture detected by two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography. The pseudoaneurysm originated from the junctional area between the inferior portion of the ventricular septum and posterior left ventricular wall. The short-axis view of two-dimensional echocardiography revealed an abrupt discontinuity of the junctional area and an echo-free space behind the left ventricular cavity. The communication orifice was 5 mm wide. Color Doppler echocardiography showed a left-to-right shunt flow from the pseudoaneurysm to the right ventricle was visualized. Combined use of two-dimensional and color Doppler echocardiography was useful for detecting a pseudoaneurysm resulting in rupture of the ventricular septum.

[Quantification of mitral regurgitant stroke volume by the proximal isovelocity surface area method].

Although color Doppler flow mapping has been used to quantitate the severity of mitral regurgitation, this approach has various limitations. Doppler color flow mapping of a proximal isovelocity surface area (PISA), defined by a blue-red aliasing interface, has been shown in vitro to be accurate for estimating volume flow rate across an orifice. Volume flow rate can be calculated as PISA x aliasing velocity. To evaluate the clinical applicability of the PISA method, we compared the regurgitant stroke volume estimated by the PISA method with the conventional pulsed wave Doppler method in 18 patients with mitral regurgitation. The mean systolic aliasing radius was calculated from color overlayed M-mode (Q/M-mode) images. The mitral regurgitant stroke volume calculated by the PISA method correlated well with that calculated by the pulsed Doppler method (r = 0.89, SEE = 6.0 ml). Thus, the color Doppler PISA method can be applicable to calculating the regurgitant volume in patients with mitral regurgitation.

[Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of pituitary adenomas].

MRI of 20 patients, 17-82 years old, with pituitary adenomas confirmed histopathologically, and 30 normal patients without pituitary dysfunction were reviewed. The studies were performed with a 0.5 Tesla MR scanner with a slice thickness of 10 mm. Inversion recovery sequences were employed as T 1-weighted examination, with repetition time (TR) of 2100-2500 msec, an inversion time (TI) of 600 msec and an echo time (TE) of 40 msec. The T 2-weighted examination had a TR of 1800-2500 msec and a TE of 120 msec. T 1-weighted images were obtained in all cases and T 2-weighted images in 14 cases. Spin echo images with a TR of 600-1000 msec and a TE of 40 msec (SE 40/600-1000) were also obtained in 14 cases. On T 1-weighted images, 20 adenomas were classified into six groups, according to their signal intensities; marked low intensity (1), low intensity (1), isointensity (11), high intensity (3), marked high intensity (1) and mixed intensity (3). On T 2-weighted images, 14 adenomas were classified into five groups; low intensity (1), isointensity (2), high intensity (4), marked high intensity (6) and mixed intensity (1). On SE 40/600-1000 images, 14 adenomas were also classified into four groups; low intensity (8), high intensity (2) and mixed intensity (3). Two adenomas with recent intratumoral hemorrhage had marked high intensity on both T1 and T2-weighted images. SE 40/600-1000 images were useful in evaluating the size and the extent of the visual pathway was best appreciated on IR images. Comparison between normal and involved cavernous sinus by adenomas was made.