Imaging in mitral stenosis: assessment before, during and after percutaneous balloon mitral valvuloplasty

Detailed assessment of mitral valve morphology is required to select patients for successful percutaneous balloon mitral valvuloplasty (PBMV). The mitral valve is routinely imaged using transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography, which have more recently been supplemented with magnetic resonance imaging, 3D echocardiography and intracardiac echocardiography. The scope of PBMV is expanding and it is increasingly used for patients previously considered to have unfavorable mitral morphology. Here we review the evidence to support the examination of each component of the mitral valve and its surrounding structures and the advantages of each imaging modality. Appropriate echocardiographic views are recommended and periprocedural and postprocedural imaging techniques are discussed.