[Usefulness of 2-dimensional echocardiography in detecting intraventricular thrombi in patients with acute myocardial infarction].
The purpose of this study is to determine the importance of two-dimensional echocardiography performed soon after admission to the coronary care unit to provide useful information concerning wall-motion abnormalities, and to detect and characterize left ventricular thrombi. A major goal is to identify a subgroup of patients with acute myocardial infarction who are at risk for systemic embolization; in this subgroup the benefits of anticoagulation treatment would theoretically outweigh the associated risks. We studied 7 consecutive male patients, age range from 32 to 60 years, with acute myocardial infarction. Five patients had antero-septal infarction, 1 anterolateral and another had anterior wall infarction. We performed two-dimensional echocardiography within the first week after admission. All patients had severe apical-wall-motion abnormalities (akinesis or dyskinesis) and left ventricular thrombi. All patients received anticoagulation therapy. Two-dimensional echocardiography, performed one month after the first study, showed that the thrombi had decreased in size in 6 patients and could not be visualized in 1 patient. The noninvasive nature of echocardiography allows serial evaluations of patients with known left ventricular thrombi and permits assessment of the effect of therapy.
Vargas-Barrón
J
J
Instituto Nacional de Cardiología Ignacio Chávez, México, D.F.
Andrade-Freire
A
A
Ramírez
J C
JC
Waisser
E
E
Martínez-Sánchez
J
J
D000328:Adult; D000925:Anticoagulants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004452:Echocardiography; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D013927:Thrombosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology*
D000925:Anticoagulants
Utilidad de la ecocardiografía bidimensional en la detección de trombos intraventriculares en pacientes con infarto agudo del miocardio.