Diagnostic accuracy of an ultrasonic multiple transducer cardiac imaging system.

Eighty patients with various forms of heart disease were studied with the use of a newly developed ultrasonic system having 20 transducers arranged in a linear array. This system allows visualization of the heart in two dimensions in real time. All 15 patients with the mitral valve prolapse syndrome, 13 patients with mitral stenosis, five patients with pericardial effusion, four patients with atrial septal defect, and one patient with left ventricular dyssynergy were properly recognized with this system. One of five patients with hypertrophic myopathy and one of four patients with congestive myopathy were not recognized with this system. Criteria for the recognition of these system. Criteria for the recognition of these conditions are presented as well as the probable cause for false-positive and false-negative diagnoses in this series. Since only qualitative criteria were used, it was not possible to differentiate patients with coronary artery disease or patients with left ventricular volume overload from patients without cardiac pathology. The accuracy of this new system was judged against the clinical examination, conventional echocardiography, cardiac catheterization, and left ventricular angiography. It is assumed that the criteria for diagnosis developed during this study will be supplemented and the equipment improved in the future; however, the ease of operation of this system and the relative accuracy of diagnosis at this stage of its development are extremely interesting. It presents an excellent opportunity to obtain additional information about the cardiac patient without using invasive procedures and without risk.