Application of the apexcarotis diagram in ischaemic heart disease with angina pectoris and myocardial infarction.

The apexcarotis diagram is a new mechanocardiographic method, uniting into a single diagram synchronous recordings of the carotidogram and apexcardiogram. Characteristic features of the apexcarotis diagram (ACD) in ischaemic heart disease with angina pectoris are the reduction of the area of ventricular ejection with a turn to the right toward the point S (p less than 0.001) and an extension of the diastolic subsegment A by more than 10% (p less than 0.001). In patients with myocardial infarction, in addition to the above changes, there occur a reduction of the area of ventricular filling (p less than 0.01) and an enlargement of the angle alpha (p less than 0.02). In 8 patients with angina pectoris and 7 patients with myocardial infarction, the coronary disease was established by coronary angiography as well as by catheterization of the right and left heart. In these patients, a reduction of the area of ventricular ejection was found, which was closely correlated with the elevation of left ventricular enddiastolic pressure (r = -0.72, p less than 0.001).