Transmitral pulsed-Doppler echocardiography is a more accurate technique compared with two-dimensional echocardiography using dobutamine, in patients with one vessel coronary artery disease.

Unlabelled: To examine the effects of dobutamine on pulsed-Doppler left ventricular filling indices and its utility for evaluation of CAD we studied 14 patients with normal coronary arteries (Group 1) and 39 patients with significant CAD (>70% diameter stenosis). Patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) were divided into two groups: patients with one-vessel coronary disease (Group 2); and those with multivessel CAD (Group 3). After stopping cardioactive treatment, patients underwent incremental dobutamine stress (5, 10, 20, 30 and 40 microg/kg/min) during pulsed-Doppler interrogation of diastolic filling with simultaneous heart rate and blood pressure measurements.