Sensitivity and speed of colour Doppler flow mapping compared with continuous wave Doppler for the detection of ventricular septal defects

Twenty nine patients (aged from three months to 37 years) with confirmed or suspected ventricular septal defects were studied separately by three examiners who used colour flow mapping and imaging, or continuous wave Doppler and imaging, or a combined reference examination. Colour flow mapping identified 19 of the 25 patients with a ventricular septal defect, continuous wave Doppler echocardiography identified 18, and the combined reference examination identified 24. Two of four patients without ventricular septal defect had a false positive result with colour flow mapping and none had a false positive result with continuous wave Doppler examination. During the reference examination continuous wave Doppler identified 24 patients with ventricular septal defects and colour flow mapping identified 23. In two patients a second ventricular septal defect was found by colour flow mapping, and confirmed by continuous wave Doppler. There was no significant difference in time to diagnosis between the two techniques. Colour flow mapping aids identification of multiple ventricular septal defects but is not faster and has lower specificity than continuous wave Doppler. A combination of the two techniques gave the highest sensitivity and specificity.     

Cross-sectional echocardiography with pulsed and continuous wave Doppler in the management of ventricular septal defects

We designed this study in order to evaluate those cross-sectional echocardiographic projections of most value in the diagnosis of ventricular septal defects and to compare the techniques of cross-sectional and Doppler echocardiography in these lesions. We studied 71 cases with ventricular septal defects confirmed by cross-sectional and/or pulsed Doppler echocardiography. The defect was imaged by cross-sectional echocardiography in 49 patients but not imaged in 22. In the group of 49 patients, except two with pulmonary hypertension, pulsed Doppler enabled us to detect a left-to-right shunt at ventricular level. In the second group of 22 patients, a positive pulsed Doppler signal was detected in the ventricles although no defect was visualized. Pulsed Doppler examination supplemented the information detectable from cross-sectional echocardiography in small defects; in the diagnosis of multiple septal defects; in the presence of aortic valve regurgitation in doubly committed and subarterial defects; in those having residual shunts after surgical correction; and in those with tricuspid valve regurgitation in the setting of perimembranous defects. Continuous wave Doppler cannot always be reliably employed in the evaluation of transventricular pressure gradient because of a failure to align with the jet in the presence of poor signals. The sub-costal oblique projections and the introduction of the right oblique sub-costal view proved, in our hands, to be the most important tools for identifying and classifying the various types of ventricular septal defect.     

Noninvasive assessment of left-to-right shunting in ventricular septal defects by the proximal isovelocity surface area method on Doppler colour flow mapping

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The proximal isovelocity surface area (PISA), which is the zone of flow convergence appearing on the left ventricular septal surface where flow approaching the defect accelerates, allows quantitative estimation of ventricular septal defect (VSD) flow and defect area on colour Doppler imaging. In the present study, the clinical applicability and reliability of the PISA method in assessing the amount of left-to-right shunting in patients with VSDs were evaluated. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty-eight patients aged 0.25 to 15 years (mean age 4.3+/-4.4 years) with VSDs were prospectively studied. Maximum PISA radius in peak systole (r), peak velocity (V(max)) and velocity time integral (VTI(VSD)) of flow through the VSD were measured. In addition, peak VSD flow (2pir(2) Nyquist limit [NL]), amount of left-to-right shunting (Qp-Qs = heart rate x [2pir(2) x NL x VTI(VSD)]/V(max)) and defect area ([2pir(2) x NL]/V(max)) were calculated. RESULTS: There were significant positive correlations between Qp-Qs values calculated by PISA and other spectral Doppler methods using the cross-sectional area, as well as the VTI of pulmonary-aortic (r=0.73, P<0.001) or mitral-tricuspid (r=0.58, P<0.001) flows and cardiac catheterization (20 patients, r=0.82, P<0.001). PISA-derived left-to-right-shunting discriminated moderate to large defects from small defects, which were classified according to the catheter-derived Qp/Qs ratio (2 or greater versus less than 2; P=0.001) or clinical evaluation (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONs: The present study demonstrated that the PISA method is a reliable semiquantitative method to determine the amount of left-to-right shunting of VSDs and to discriminate moderate to large defects from small defects. Consequently, this method may serve as a simple and useful adjunct to conventional spectral Doppler methods in the noninvasive assessment of patients with VSDs.     

Color Doppler detection of multiple ventricular septal defects

Combined two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography has a high sensitivity and specificity for detection of isolated perimembranous ventricular septal defects. However, muscular or multiple ventricular septal defects may be difficult to diagnose with noninvasive methods, particularly in older children, necessitating angiography for accurate diagnosis. Detection of single and multiple ventricular septal defects with two-dimensional color flow mapping was compared with detection by standard two-dimensional imaging and Doppler. Both techniques were compared with four-chamber left ventricular angiography. Fifty-one patients (age 3 months to 25 years, mean 5.6 years) were studied. Eighteen had solitary ventricular septal defects, 18 had multiple ventricular septal defects, and 15 patients with intact ventricular septum served as a control group. At least one ventricular septal defect was detected by color Doppler and two-dimensional/Doppler methods in all patients with ventricular septal defect proved by angiography with no false positives. In the detection of multiple ventricular septal defects, the sensitivity of color Doppler was 72% and that of two-dimensional/Doppler was 38% (100% specificity in both). Color Doppler failed to identify multiple ventricular septal defects in five patients (two weighing less than 4 kg and three with reduced pulmonary blood flow). However, no large additional muscular defects were missed by imaging and color Doppler. Color Doppler is useful for the detection of ventricular septal defects and has higher sensitivity than two-dimensional/Doppler for multiple ventricular septal defects. The contribution of color Doppler appears to be in the detection of additional small muscular ventricular septal defects.     

Reliability of Doppler color flow mapping in the identification and localization of multiple ventricular septal defects

The purpose of this study was to compare Doppler color flow mapping with angiography and surgical observation for detection of multiple ventricular septal defects (VSDs). Only patients with elevated pulmonary ventricular pressure were included. Among 137 patients with VSDs, 38 multiple defects were identified in 25 patients echocardiographically, 34 multiple defects in 24 patients angiographically, and 21 multiple defects in 17 patients surgically. Using surgical observation as the reference standard, the sensitivity of echocardiography for identifying patients with multiple VSDs was 17 of 17 (100%) and for angiography 15 of 17 (88%). The sensitivity of echocardiography for identifying all multiple VSDs seen at operation was 19 of 21 (90%) and of angiography was also 19 of 21 (90%). In many patients, use of both techniques may no longer be necessary.     

Elucidation of the natural history of ventricular septal defects by serial Doppler color flow mapping studies

Two-dimensional echocardiography has provided information to aid in the diagnosis and management of infants with ventricular septal defect, but its inability to resolve very small ventricular septal defects and problems with defining ventricular septal defect orifice size (because of overlying muscle or tricuspid tissue) have made it unsuitable as a standard for defining the natural history of ventricular septal defect. In this study, 114 serial two-dimensional Doppler color flow mapping studies were performed to define ventricular septal defect anatomy, location and color flow diameter as an indicator of shunt size in 66 patients (over a 40 month period). Twenty-five patients first studied at 6 months of age (mean age at most recent study 15.9 months) had congestive heart failure and 41 (mean age 45 months) did not. In the congestive heart failure group, there were 24 perimembranous and 1 muscular ventricular septal defect and aneurysm formation was present in 17. Mean (+/- SD) color flow diameter was 8.2 +/- 1.9 mm and color flow diameter/aortic root diameter ratio was 0.63. In the 30 patients who underwent cardiac catheterization, color flow diameter bore a close relation to angiographic diameter (r = 0.96) and pulmonary/systemic flow ratio (Qp/Qs) (r = 0.88). In the patients with congestive heart failure, 4 of the 25 ventricular septal defects, all with aneurysm present or positioned adjacent to the tricuspid valve, became smaller but none closed. Of the 41 patients without congestive heart failure, 21 had a perimembranous defect (15 with aneurysm), 18 had a muscular ventricular septal defect and 2 had a supracristal ventricular septal defect.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

The usefulness of cross-sectional Doppler flow imaging in the detection of small ventricular septal defects with left-to-right shunt

Small ventricular septal defects (VSDs) with left to right (L–R)shunt have been difficult to diagnose with conventional ultrasoundtechniques. Using the cross-sectional Doppler flow imaging system,additional information can be obtained. In a group of 60 patientswith a clinical diagnosis ofVSD with L–R shunt, the newtechnique proved valuable, especially in detecting muscularand apical VSDs.     

The usefulness of cross-sectional Doppler flow imaging in the detection of small ventricular septal defects with left-to-right shunt

Small ventricular septal defects (VSDs) with left to right (L–R)shunt have been difficult to diagnose with conventional ultrasoundtechniques. Using the cross-sectional Doppler flow imaging system,additional information can be obtained. In a group of 60 patientswith a clinical diagnosis ofVSD with L–R shunt, the newtechnique proved valuable, especially in detecting muscularand apical VSDs.     

Doppler echocardiographic observations of diastolic trans-septal flow through small ventricular septal defects.

Turbulent left-to-right trans-septal diastolic blood flow with a peak velocity greater than 0.5 m.s-1 was detected by pulsed Doppler echocardiography in 10 out of 204 (4.9%) children with isolated small ventricular septal defects. For children older than 10 years, it was observed in over a quarter of cases (27%). Peak diastolic velocities ranged from 0.6-1.9 m.s-1 (mean 1.2 m.s-1) and in all patients the duration of diastolic flow exceeded that of the systolic trans-septal jet. Three different patterns of diastolic flow were observed and in eight cases pre-systolic acceleration was present. Turbulent diastolic flow across small ventricular septal defects is a common finding in older children and should not be confused with other causes of disturbed diastolic flow within the right ventricle.     

Colour Doppler flow mapping in the diagnosis of traumatic ventricular septal defect

The use of colour Doppler flow mapping allows noninvasive diagnosis and gives haemodynamic information on the severity of ventricular septal defects. We describe the case of a man with delayed presentation of a traumatic ventricular septal defect in whom colour Doppler flow mapping permitted conservative management after accurate noninvasive diagnosis.     

Two-dimensional Doppler color flow mapping for detecting atrial and ventricular septal defects. Studies in an animal model and in the clinical setting

In experimental studies in six dogs as well as in clinical studies in eleven patients with atrial septal defect and 27 patients with ventricular septal defect, the diagnostic usefulness of color Doppler echocardiography in detection of small septal defects and multiple defects was analyzed. The study showed that atrial or ventricular septal defects with a size of 2.5 to 3 mm or more, which eluded detection with two-dimensional echocardiography, were easily identified with the color Doppler method. Additionally, multiple defects were reliably demonstrated. In atrial septal defects, according to the results of this study, the shunt area in the color Doppler image enables a semiquantitative estimation of the shunt volume.     

Diagnosis of ventricular septal rupture after myocardial infarction: value of colour flow mapping.

Twenty patients with ventricular septal rupture after myocardial infarction were investigated by cross sectional echocardiography with integrated pulsed and continuous wave Doppler and colour flow mapping. Confirmatory cardiac catheterisation was performed in 12 patients. Eighteen patients had surgical repair with inspection of the defect. Six patients in whom recurrent ventricular septal rupture developed were also investigated by Doppler echocardiography and colour flow mapping. Cross sectional echocardiography correctly predicted the infarct territory in all cases but visualised the septal rupture in only seven (35%). Pulsed and continuous wave Doppler detected a disturbance of right ventricular systolic flow that was diagnostic of a ventricular septal rupture in 19 (95%), but this only accurately predicted the site in 14 (70%). Colour flow mapping studies showed a mosaic jet traversing the interventricular septum in all 20 cases, and this accurately predicted the site of rupture. In addition colour flow mapping defined three sites of ventricular septal rupture: apical, posterior, and anterior trabecular. Five of the six patients with recurrent rupture were correctly diagnosed by pulsed and continuous wave Doppler and all six were diagnosed by colour flow mapping. Cross sectional echocardiography with colour flow mapping is a highly sensitive and rapid technique for the assessment of postinfarction ventricular septal rupture before and after operation. It was more informative about the site of the rupture than pulsed and continuous wave Doppler echocardiography.     

Quantitative, non-invasive assessment of ventricular septal defect shunt flow by measuring proximal isovelocity surface area on colour Doppler mapping.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the proximal isovelocity surface area (PISA) method could be applied to estimate the magnitude of ventricular septal defect (VSD) shunt flow. DESIGN: Prospective analysis of clinical, echocardiographic, and angiographic data. SETTING: University hospital. PATIENTS: 14 children with VSD. METHODS: Colour Doppler images of VSD shunt flow were obtained in parasternal long axis view, four chamber view or both, adjusted to provide the best imaging of flow. The VSD shunt flow rate and shunt volume were calculated as follows: shunt flow rate (SFR) = 2 pi r2 V/BSA in ml/s/m2; shunt volume = SFR x shunt duration time. The shunt volume, shunt fraction, and pulmonary to systemic flow ratio (Qp:Qs) were confirmed by cardiac catheterisation. RESULTS: There was a correlation between shunt variables determined by PISA and those by catheterisation, including shunt volume (r = 0.78, P = 0.001) and shunt fraction (r = 0.74, P = 0.003). Qp:Qs was also significantly correlated with SFR (r = 0.79, P = 0.0007). The SFR was significantly different between the four patients with Qp:Qs < 2.0 (mean (SD) 54 (33) ml/s/m2) and the 10 patients with Qp:Qs > 2.0 (186 (69) ml/s/m2) (P = 0.004). CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that the PISA method is a reliable non-invasive investigation for the quantitative assessment of VSD shunt flow and provides important information for decisions regarding surgical repair.     

Prospective detection by Doppler color flow imaging of additional defects in infants with a large ventricular septal defect

The use of Doppler color flow imaging and axial contrast angiography in the preoperative detection of additional ventricular septal defects (in the setting of a known large defect) were compared in a prospective fashion. One hundred seventy-nine infants with two ventricles (each of at least normal size) and a large, nonrestrictive ventricular septal defect underwent reparative surgery before 2 years of age. The reference standard for the presence of additional defects was intraoperative verification or (in cases in which the surgeon did not visualize any additional defect) subsequent identification at postoperative angiography, postoperative color Doppler examination or reoperation. Only six patients (3%) had additional ventricular septal defects confirmed at the time of repair; an additional five (3%) had defects found only postoperatively. The negative predictive value of Doppler color flow imaging and angiography was 0.95 (168 of 176) and 0.97 (168 of 174), respectively. The sensitivity was 0.27 (3 of 11) and 0.45 (5 of 11), respectively. For certain malformations with a very low prevalence of additional muscular defects (such as perimembranous ventricular septal defect with normally aligned great arteries), a clinical trial of reparative surgery without prior invasive study appears reasonable.     

Doppler echocardiographic analysis of the transmitral flow velocity profile in patients with ventricular septal defects

Using continuous-wave Doppler echocardiography, we evaluated the mitral flow velocity pattern in 30 ventricular septal defect patients, 11 of whom had severe pulmonary vascular obstructive disease (Group I); 10 of whom had severe pulmonary hypertension without pulmonary vascular obstructive disease (Group II); and 9 of whom had no pulmonary hypertension and hemodynamically unimportant left-to-right shunts (Group III). In addition, 25 healthy subjects (Group IV) were studied for comparative purposes. The peak velocity of early left ventricular filling (E) was significantly lower in Group I than in all the other groups (p < 0.01). The peak velocity of late left ventricular filling (A) was significantly higher (p < 0.01) in Group I than in Group III, or than in normal individuals (Group IV) (p < 0.01). The ratio A/E was the most prominent difference between Group I patients and the other groups, with Group I having a significantly higher ratio (p < 0.01), which was 1 or greater in 9 of 11 patients. In contrast, none of the remaining ventricular septal defect patients or normal subjects had an A/E ratio of 1 or greater. Group II had increased mitral flow velocities, while Group III had normal mitral flow velocity profiles. A positive correlation between the magnitude of the left-to-right shunt and early mitral flow velocity peak (r = 0.86) and late peak (r = 0.81) was found, regardless of the degree of pulmonary hypertension. These results indicate that significant alterations of the mitral flow velocity pattern, which mimic the abnormalities associated with impaired left ventricular diastolic function (A/E ratio of 1 or greater), occur in ventricular septal defect patients who have severe pulmonary vascular obstructive disease. The transmitral velocity profiles in the ventricular septal defect patients without severe pulmonary vascular obstructive disease were similar to those of the normal patients, although the values relative to the degree of left-to-right shunting were higher in the ventricular septal defect patients.     

Localisation of ventricular septal defects by simultaneous display of superimposed colour Doppler and cross sectional echocardiographic images.

Precise non-invasive localisation of the site of a small ventricular septal defect was attempted using a new technique that simultaneously combines conventional cross sectional echocardiography with a Doppler system by superimposing the colour coded direction and velocity of blood flow directly on to real time ultrasound images. Twenty three patients with unoperated ventricular septal defects and a further eight after surgical closure were studied; 12 children with normal hearts served as controls. A colour coded blood flow jet entering the right ventricle during systole was identified in all 23 unoperated patients, in 11 of whom the defect was too small to be visualised by conventional cross sectional echocardiography. The colour Doppler technique precisely located 19 perimembranous and five trabecular defects (one patient had two defects). Five of the postoperative patients were without clinical evidence of a significant shunt but had pansystolic murmurs. In each of these five, trans-septal shunt blood flow as demonstrated by colour Doppler images whereas in only three of these patients was the residual defect large enough to be visualised by conventional cross sectional echocardiography. Three postoperative patients had no murmurs and showed no residual shunt on colour Doppler images. This was confirmed at cardiac catheterisation. There were no false positive results among the controls. This technique is useful for the more accurate diagnosis and location of ventricular septal defects and may help in assessing their natural or surgical closure.     

Diagnosis of ventricular septal rupture after myocardial infarction: value of colour flow mapping

Twenty patients with ventricular septal rupture after myocardial infarction were investigated by cross sectional echocardiography with integrated pulsed and continuous wave Doppler and colour flow mapping. Confirmatory cardiac catheterisation was performed in 12 patients. Eighteen patients had surgical repair with inspection of the defect. Six patients in whom recurrent ventricular septal rupture developed were also investigated by Doppler echocardiography and colour flow mapping. Cross sectional echocardiography correctly predicted the infarct territory in all cases but visualised the septal rupture in only seven (35%). Pulsed and continuous wave Doppler detected a disturbance of right ventricular systolic flow that was diagnostic of a ventricular septal rupture in 19 (95%), but this only accurately predicted the site in 14 (70%). Colour flow mapping studies showed a mosaic jet traversing the interventricular septum in all 20 cases, and this accurately predicted the site of rupture. In addition colour flow mapping defined three sites of ventricular septal rupture: apical, posterior, and anterior trabecular. Five of the six patients with recurrent rupture were correctly diagnosed by pulsed and continuous wave Doppler and all six were diagnosed by colour flow mapping. Cross sectional echocardiography with colour flow mapping is a highly sensitive and rapid technique for the assessment of postinfarction ventricular septal rupture before and after operation. It was more informative about the site of the rupture than pulsed and continuous wave Doppler echocardiography.