Applicability of ultrasonic tissue characterization for longitudinal assessment and differentiation of calcification and fibrosis in cardiomyopathy

Progress in tissue characterization of myocardium with ultrasound suggests that quantitative recognition of ischemic or scarred tissue will be achieved. Despite the increasing recognition and importance of cardiomyopathy, its diagnosis generally requires invasive procedures such as cardiac catheterization and biopsy. To investigate methods that permit the characterization of longitudinal cardiomyopathic changes that might ultimately be extended for noninvasive studies in patients, quantitative ultrasonic methods were utilized for in vitro tissue characterization of hearts from Syrian hamsters of selected age of either 2 to 3 or 5 to 7 months. Normal hamsters were used as controls. Myocardial sites (n = 600) from the young Syrian hamsters exhibited values (+/- standard error) of integrated ultrasonic backscatter averaging -53.87 +/- 0.26 dB, which were significantly different from values (n = 500) in age-matched control hamsters (-58.07 +/- 0.08 dB; p less than 0.001). Cardiomyopathic hearts from older animals exhibited backscatter values (n = 500 sites) averaging -50.87 +/- 0.22 dB, again significantly different from values (n = 300 sites) in age-matched control hamsters (-55.91 +/- 0.11 dB; p less than 0.001). In addition, ultrasonic attenuation was significantly different for hearts from the control and cardiomyopathic hamsters of both age ranges. The results correlated with sequential calcification and fibrosis characteristics assessed histopathologically. This study indicates that quantitative characterization of myocardium with ultrasound may permit longitudinal assessment of cardiomyopathic changes in diverse disease entities and their response to therapy.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				K. H. Yiu, N. Ajmone Marsan, V. Delgado, N. R. Biermasz, E. R. Holman, J. W. A. Smit, R. A. Feelders, J. J. Bax, and A. M. Pereira Increased myocardial fibrosis and left ventricular dysfunction in Cushing's syndrome Eur. J. Endocrinol., January 1, 2012; 166(1): 27 - 34. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. W. den Uijl, V. Delgado, M. Bertini, L. F. Tops, S. A. Trines, N. R. van de Veire, K. Zeppenfeld, M. J. Schalij, and J. J. Bax Impact of left atrial fibrosis and left atrial size on the outcome of catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation Heart, November 15, 2011; 97(22): 1847 - 1851. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. Bertini, V. Delgado, D. W. den Uijl, G. Nucifora, A. C.T. Ng, R. J. van Bommel, C. J. W. Borleffs, G. Boriani, M. J. Schalij, and J. J. Bax Prediction of Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy Response: Value of Calibrated Integrated Backscatter Imaging Circ Cardiovasc Imaging, January 1, 2010; 3(1): 86 - 93. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				G. Bernini, F. Galetta, F. Franzoni, M. Bardini, C. Taurino, A. Moretti, M. Bernini, P. Berti, P. Miccoli, and A. Salvetti Normalization of catecholamine production following resection of phaeochromocytoma positively influences carotid vascular remodelling Eur. J. Endocrinol., August 1, 2008; 159(2): 137 - 143. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				E. Agabiti-Rosei, M. L. Muiesan, and M. Salvetti Review: New approaches to the assessment of left ventricular hypertrophy Therapeutic Advances in Cardiovascular Disease, December 1, 2007; 1(2): 119 - 128. [Abstract] [PDF]

				M. Salvetti, M. L. Muiesan, A. Paini, C. Monteduro, B. Bonzi, G. Galbassini, E. Belotti, E. Movilli, G. Cancarini, and E. Agabiti-Rosei Myocardial Ultrasound Tissue Characterization in Patients with Chronic Renal Failure J. Am. Soc. Nephrol., June 1, 2007; 18(6): 1953 - 1958. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				R. Lasserre, P. Gosse, and S. Mansour Myocardial Tissue Characterization in Echocardiography with Videodensitometry: Evaluation of a New Semi-automatic Software Applied on a Population of Hypertensive Patients Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging, December 1, 2003; 4(4): 292 - 299. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				V. Giglio, V. Pasceri, L. Messano, F. Mangiola, L. Pasquini, A. Dello Russo, A. Damiani, M. Mirabella, G. Galluzzi, P. Tonali, et al. Ultrasound tissue characterization detectspreclinical myocardial structural changes inchildren affected by Duchenne muscular dystrophy J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., July 16, 2003; 42(2): 309 - 316. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. M. Maceira, J. Barba, O. Beloqui, and J. Diez Ultrasonic Backscatter and Diastolic Function in Hypertensive Patients Hypertension, September 1, 2002; 40(3): 239 - 243. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. M. Maceira, J. Barba, N. Varo, O. Beloqui, and J. Diez Ultrasonic Backscatter and Serum Marker of Cardiac Fibrosis in Hypertensives Hypertension, April 1, 2002; 39(4): 923 - 928. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Takiuchi, H. Rakugi, K. Honda, T. Masuyama, N. Hirata, H. Ito, K. Sugimoto, Y. Yanagitani, K. Moriguchi, A. Okamura, et al. Quantitative Ultrasonic Tissue Characterization Can Identify High-Risk Atherosclerotic Alteration in Human Carotid Arteries Circulation, August 15, 2000; 102(7): 766 - 770. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Nozaki, A. N. DeMaria, G. A. Helmer, and H. K. Hammond Detection of Regional Left Ventricular Dysfunction in Early Pacing-Induced Heart Failure Using Ultrasonic Integrated Backscatter Circulation, November 1, 1995; 92(9): 2676 - 2682. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				A. D. Waggoner, B. Barzilai, J. G. Miller, and J. E. Perez Quantitative Echocardiography, Part 1: Myocardial Tissue Characterization with Analysis of Radiofrequency Signas Journal of Diagnostic Medical Sonography, May 1, 1993; 9(3): 122 - 134. [Abstract] [PDF]