Automatic Border Detection to Assess Right Ventricular Function Following Surgical Treatment of Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension.

Automatic border detection (ABD) has been developed as a potentially useful means for evaluating ventricular function on line in an automatic fashion. Its success with tracking left ventricular function is established, but little is known about its ability to assess right ventricular (RV) function. Accordingly, 20 patients with severe pulmonary hypertension due to chronic thromboembolic disease underwent standard two-dimensional echocardiography and imaging with ABD before and after pulmonary thromboendarterectomy to correct pulmonary hypertension.