Assessment of myocardial collateral blood flow with contrast echocardiography

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Humans have pre-formed collateral vessels that enlarge with ischemia. In addition, new vessels can be formed within ischemic zones from pre-formed endocardial arcades of vessels providing rich collateral flow. Collateral flow under resting conditions (if >25% of normal) is enough to maintain myocardial viability, but may be insufficient to prevent myocardial ischemia under stress. Coronary angiography is a poor tool for collateral flow assessment. Myocardial contrast echocardiography is arguably the gold standard for experimental and clinical measurement of collateral flow. This review describes several experimental and clinical studies that highlight the importance of the collateral circulation in coronary artery disease.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)351-356
Number of pages6
JournalKorean Circulation Journal
Volume45
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 1 2015

Keywords

  • Collateral blood circulation
  • Contrast echocardiography
  • Myocardial ischemia

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Internal Medicine
  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine

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