[Value of computer tomography compared to angiography and echocardiography in the diagnosis of intracardiac thromboses].

Until recently the only means of diagnosing intracardiac thromboses were angiography and M mode and 2D echocardiography. The aim of this study was to assess the value of CAT scanning in this field and to compare it with angiography and ultrasonography. Twenty intracardiac thromboses were studied in 19 patients by CAT scanning: 14 in the left ventricle, 2 in the right ventricle, and 4 in the left atrium, one patient having both left and right ventricular intracavitary thrombosis. M mode and 2D echocardiography and angiography were carried out whenever possible. Although for different practical reasons all patients did not undergo all three investigations, CAT scanning appeared to be the most reliable diagnostic method in intracardiac thrombosis, being more specific than either angiography and ultrasonography. In addition, the therapeutic effects of anticoagulant therapy on the thrombus can be assessed and other associated pathology such as aneurysm, pericardial reaction, dilatation of the cardiac cavities, myocardial and valvular calcification can also be demonstrated.