Imaging techniques and the evaluation of the right heart and the pulmonary circulation.
Since the right side of the heart and the pulmonary circulation are regarded as secondary components of the circulatory system, their role in disease has traditionally not received the same attention as their counterparts in the systemic circulation. This was partly because precise noninvasive study of these structures was difficult. For many years, chest radiography and invasive angiography were the only techniques available for imaging the minor circulation. The development of transthoracic echocardiography and nuclear techniques has produced a significant leap forward for noninvasive imaging, particularly of the right ventricle. More recently, novel echocardiographic techniques, and advances in computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, in particular, have expanded our diagnostic armamentarium and provided new insights into the anatomy and function of the pulmonary circulation in both health and disease. This article contains a review of the current status of techniques for imaging the right side of the heart and the pulmonary circulation.
Sanz
Javier
J
The Zena and Michael A. Wiener Cardiovascular Institute and Marie-Josee and Henry R. Kravis Center for Cardiovascular Health, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA. Javier.Sanz@mssm.edu
Fernández-Friera
Leticia
L
Moral
Sergio
S
D017023:Coronary Angiography; D004452:Echocardiography; D006321:Heart / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D011652:Pulmonary Circulation / Q000502:physiology*; D013902:Radiography, Thoracic; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed