Delayed enhancement on cardiac magnetic resonance and clinical, morphological, and electrocardiographical features in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Background: The clinical, morphological, and electrocardiographical relevance of delayed enhancement (DE) in cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) was studied in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).

Methods And Results: A total of 56 patients underwent both gadolinium-enhanced CMR and 12-lead electrocardiogram. The CMR demonstrated DE at the left ventricular (LV) wall in 39 patients.

The usefulness of delayed enhancement magnetic resonance imaging for diagnosis and evaluation of cardiac function in patients with cardiac sarcoidosis.

Objectives: Cardiac involvement is an important prognostic factor in patients with sarcoidosis. We evaluated the usefulness of delayed enhancement MRI (DE-MRI) for diagnosing cardiac sarcoidosis by comparing with nuclear imaging and studying the correlation between DE area and left ventricular (LV) function.

Methods: Twelve patients (male:female 3:9) diagnosed as having sarcoidosis underwent Gd-MRI, myocardial perfusion SPECT (Tl-201, Tc-99m sestamibi), Ga-67 scintigraphy, and/or F-18 FDG-PET.

Usefulness of delayed enhancement magnetic resonance imaging to differentiate dilated phase of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and dilated cardiomyopathy.

Background: The dilated phase of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) has a poor prognosis. For correct recognition of such patients, we compared the findings in cardiac delayed enhancement (DE)-magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) between HCM and dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) patients.

Methods And Results: Sixty-five patients (HCM 39, DCM 26) underwent gadolinium-DTPA-enhanced MRI.

Usefulness of delayed enhancement magnetic resonance imaging for detecting cardiac rupture caused by small myocardial infarction in a case of cardiac tamponade.

Delayed enhancement magnetic resonance imaging (DE-MRI) has excellent spatial resolution and compared with other cardiac imaging techniques it can detect a small myocardial infarction (MI) or a subendocardial infarction. A 76-year-old man was admitted for loss of consciousness because of cardiac tamponade. The cause of tamponade was unknown, but electrocardiography and blood test suggested a recent MI.

[Usefulness of lung and right ventricular thallium-201 uptake during single photon emission computed tomography in exercise testing of patients with coronary artery disease].

Objectives: Increased pulmonary or right ventricular 201Tl uptake during the exercise test has been used as a marker of multivessel coronary artery disease. The most useful method for assessing the severity of coronary artery disease was evaluated among conventional evaluation of single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), measurement of lung to heart uptake ratio (L/H), and right ventricular to left ventricular uptake ratio (RV/LV) on 201Tl images during exercise testing.

Methods: Regions-of-interest (4 X 4 pixels) were placed at the lung and the heart, and L/H was defined as mean lung uptake/mean heart uptake.

Usefulness of stress myocardial perfusion imaging for evaluating asymptomatic patients after coronary stent implantation.

Background: Stent implantation in coronary angioplasty has reduced the rate of restenosis, but many patients still undergo follow-up coronary angiography (CAG). The present study was a multi-center retrospective analysis of the usefulness of stress single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) compared with follow-up CAG in stent-implanted patients who remained asymptomatic during the follow-up period.

Methods And Results: The study group of 103 patients underwent both SPECT and CAG at 4-9 months after stent implantation.