title: Cross-sectional and pulsed Doppler echocardiography of the atrioventricular junction of hearts with univentricular atrioventricular connexion.
abstract: The atrioventricular junction of 52 consecutive patients with univentricular atrioventricular connexion was examined by cross-sectional and pulsed Doppler echocardiography. The echocardiographic features were then compared with catheterisation and cineangiographic findings. In the diagnosis of the mode of atrioventricular connexion, cross-sectional echocardiography was superior to cineangiography in differentiating single inlet with absence of one atrioventricular connexion from double inlet with a common atrioventricular valve. Straddling atrioventricular valves were diagnosed by echocardiography alone. Using pulsed Doppler echocardiography, the diagnostic sensitivity of atrioventricular valvar regurgitation was 92.6% and the specificity 100%. By mapping the regurgitant jet with pulsed Doppler echocardiography, an index was derived to evaluate the severity of atrioventricular valvar regurgitation. The indices obtained correlated well with cineangiographic grading on a three-point scale (Spearman rank correlation coefficient: rs = 0.9). Thus, cross-sectional echocardiography coupled with a range-gated Doppler system provide accurate anatomical details of the atrioventricular junction and reliable assessment of atrioventricular valvar regurgitation in patients with univentricular atrioventricular connexion.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000792:Angiography; D006328:Cardiac Catheterization; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods*; D006321:Heart / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006325:Heart Atria; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006351:Heart Valves / Q000002:abnormalities; D006352:Heart Ventricles; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D009040:Motion Pictures