Ultrasonic Cardiac Echography for Determining Stroke Volume and Valvular Regurgitation

The ventricular dimensions of 51 patients with heart disease were determined by ultrasonic echography during cardiac catheterization. These data were used to calculate end-diastolic and end-systolic volumes and stroke volume, using a prolate ellipse as a geometric model of the left ventricle. In 30 patients without valvular regurgitation the stroke volumes determined by the echographic method were compared with those determined simultaneously by the standard Fick method with a correlation coefficient of r = 0.966. In 21 patients with valvular regurgitation, the severity of regurgitation was estimated by comparing the forward stroke volume determined by the Fick method with the total left ventricular stroke volume determined by the echographic method. These calculations of regurgitation correlated reasonably well with the degree of valvular regurgitation estimated from angiocardiographic study. It is suggested that these echographic determinations of stroke volume are an atraumatic, safe, and acceptable method in patients without valvular regurgitation. Moreover, these preliminary studies suggest that the severity of valvular regurgitation can be estimated by utilizing ultrasound echocardiography.