Movement of the Mitral Ring: A Study in Ultrasoundcardiography

An identifiable ultrasound “echo” can be received, it is believed, from the mitral ring. Ring movement may thus be recorded in the intact subject. The recording shows a ventricular dimension type of curve, characteristically different from the well-known mitral valve echo pattern. Recorded from the apical area in 25 normal subjects, the movement amounted to 1·6 ± 0·4 cm, and the curve contour was remarkably constant. Deviations from normal were seen in heart disease.