Echocardiographic visualization of coronary artery anatomy in the adult

In the light of technologic advances and the development of new imaging planes, the feasibility of two-dimensional echocardiographic visualization of coronary artery anatomy was reevaluated in the adult. Thirty-five subjects were studied using an ultrasonograph equipped with a 3.5 and 5.0 MHz annular array transducer, digital processing and cine loop review. There were 18 normal subjects and 17 patients with heart disease, including 9 patients with valvular, 5 patients with coronary, 2 patients with congenital and 1 patient with cardiomyopathic disease. The mean age was 47 ± 18 years (range 17 to 79). Modifications of standard parasternal and apical views permitted high quality images of portions of each of the major epicardial vessels adequate for assessment of luminal diameter.