title: Revealing infective endocarditis complications by echocardiography: the value of real-time 3D transesophageal echocardiography.
abstract: A 72-year-old patient was admitted to the Department of Cardiology of Emory University Hospital with the diagnosis of infective endocarditis. Two-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) showed a vegetation attached to the posterior mitral valve leaflet that led to severe mitral regurgitation. Real-time 3-dimensional TEE clearly identified the large posterior leaflet vegetation but additionally showed the perforated posterior mitral valve leaflet. Real time 3D TEE, and especially the large sector-focused data, allow for detailed identification of the mitral valve leaflets from both the atrial and the ventricular side. Those characteristics of real-time 3D TEE confer incremental value in assessing infective endocarditis lesions and complications.
authors.affiliation: Emory University School of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, 1365 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
authors.forename: Agathi-Rosa
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Vrettou
authors.forename: Achilles
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zacharoulis
authors.forename: Stamatios
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lerakis
authors.forename: Dimitrios T
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Kremastinos
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D019560:Echocardiography, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods*; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal / Q000379:methods*; D004696:Endocarditis / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D004697:Endocarditis, Bacterial / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008943:Mitral Valve / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D008944:Mitral Valve Insufficiency / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology