Right-heart echocontrast in the anesthetized dog after i.v. administration of a new standardized sonographic contrast agent. 3rd communication: comparison of various contrast agents employed in contrast echocardiography.

Right-ventricular contrast provided by the new standardized sonographic contrast agent SH U 454, which consists of pure galactose microparticles, with 300 mg microparticles/ml and by 5 other currently employed ultrasonic contrast media was examined by 2 D echocardiography in 10 anesthetized female beagle dogs (6.8-12.7 kg) following i.v. administration. With a 5-min interval between injections each animal was given 3 injections of 2 ml of each formulation in random order using an injection speed of approximately 2 ml/s. The echocardiographic investigation was recorded on videotape and the contrast assessed blind using a visual score system (rating 0-5) by two investigators working independently and also by a videodensitometer. Only SH U 454 caused an intense, homogeneous and reproducible opacification of the right heart chambers. By comparison with other formulations for right-heart echocontrast, SH U 454 was significantly superior (p less than 0.05) in every parameter assessed.