title: Rapid and accurate measurement of left ventricular function with a new second-harmonic fast-rotating transducer and semi-automated border detection.
abstract: Measurement of left ventricular (LV) volume and function are the most common clinical referral questions to the echocardiography laboratory. A fast, practical, and accurate method would offer important advantages to obtain this important information. To validate a new practical method for rapid measurement of LV volume and function. We developed a continuous fast-rotating transducer, with second-harmonic capabilities, for three-dimensional echocardiography (3DE). Fifteen cardiac patients underwent both 3DE and magnetic resonance imaging (reference method) on the same day. 3DE image acquisition was performed during a 10-second breath-hold with a frame rate of 100 frames/sec and a rotational speed of 6 rotations/sec. The individual images were postprocessed with Matlab software using multibeat data fusion. Subsequently, with these images, 12 datasets per cardiac cycle were reconstructed, each comprising seven equidistant cross-sectional images for analysis in the new TomTec 4DLV analysis software, which uses a semi-automated border detection (ABD) algorithm. The ABD requires an average analysis time of 15 minutes per patient. A strong correlation was found between LV end-diastolic volume (r = 0.99; y = 0.95x - 1.14 ml; SEE = 6.5 ml), LV end-systolic volume (r = 0.96; y = 0.89x + 7.91 ml; SEE = 7.0 ml), and LV ejection fraction (r = 0.93; y = 0.69x + 13.36; SEE = 2.4%). Inter- and intraobserver agreement for all measurements was good. The fast-rotating transducer with new ABD software is a dedicated tool for rapid and accurate analysis of LV volume and function.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Thoraxcenter and Department of Radiology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Boudewijn J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Krenning
authors.forename: Marco M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Voormolen
authors.forename: Robert-Jan
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: van Geuns
authors.forename: W B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Vletter
authors.forename: Charles T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Lancée
authors.forename: Nico
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: de Jong
authors.forename: Folkert J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Ten Cate
authors.forename: Anton F W
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: van der Steen
authors.forename: Jos R T C
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Roelandt
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D019560:Echocardiography, Three-Dimensional / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D016014:Linear Models; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008875:Middle Aged; D015588:Observer Variation; D012984:Software; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013318:Stroke Volume; D014159:Transducers; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*