Coronary artery blood flow velocity non-invasively measured using a vessel-tracking pulsed Doppler system

A newly-developed noninvasive method was used to measure left coronary blood flow during phantom experiments. Two techniques were used in which: (1) the sample position can always be set in a fluctuating vessel using a wall echo-tracking method with a phase-locked-loop, and (2) the Doppler reference signal was generated separately synchronous with the wall echo signal. These techniques were combined, using a commercially available pulsed Doppler apparatus (SSH-40B: Toshiba). Basic experiments were performed using a blood vessel phantom to verify the validity of these systems. Blood flow velocity in the fluctuating tube could be measured clearly using a vessel-tracking method. The blood flow velocity of the left anterior descending artery was measured in three normal subjects and in seven patients from the third intercostal space along the left sternal border. The velocity pattern was characterized by a crescendo-decrescendo shape in diastole. The peak velocity which appeared in diastole ranged from 19 to 69 cm/sec, with no difference by disease entity. However, in all cases, the blood flow velocity signals were marred by extraneous signals, making it impossible to measure blood flow velocity during systole. Further improvement of the system is mandatory in order to use this flowmeter clinically.