How to quantitate valve regurgitation by echo Doppler techniques

Echo Doppler techniques have revolutionised the non-invasive investigation of valvular heart disease and have become widely accepted and used as part of modem clinical cardiology.There is no single method that provides an entirely accurate quantitative assessment of the severity of valve regurgita- tion, and the complex interaction of anatomic and haemodynamic variables can add to these potential difficulties.Although cardiac ultra- sound techniques do provide important clinical information in patients with valve regurgita- tion it is very important that the results are interpreted with a knowledge not only of the clinical findings but also of the advantages and limitations of cardiac ultrasound.This article attempts to provide a practical perspec- tive of the current value of echo Doppler tech- niques in the assessment of valve regurgitation and to provide an.insight into the relative merits of individual methods of quantitation.