Exercise 2-dimensional echocardiography. Quantitation of left ventricular performance in patients with severe angina pectoris.

To assess the feasibility and reproducibility of exercise 2-dimensional (2-D) echocardiography for quantitating left ventricular size and performance, 25 patients with angina pectoris due to severe coronary artery disease and 10 normal subjects were studied before and after the administration of nitroglycerin. In 18 (72%) of the 25 patients, suitable biapical 2-D echocardiograms for quantitative analysis were recorded during upright bicycle exercise. Left ventricular volume (Simpson's rule), ejection fraction (EF), and wall motion score (10 segments graded 0 to 3, normal to dyskinetic) were measured at rest, and at peak exercise (control), 30 minutes later at rest, after nitroglycerin at rest, and at peak exercise. EF increased during control exercise in the normal subjects from 57 +/- 16 to 71 +/- 22% (p less than 0.01), but was unchanged in the patients during exercise before nitroglycerin. In 7 patients (39%), marked increases in EF (greater than 0.05 units) during exercise occurred after nitroglycerin administration. The wall motion score increased significantly in the patients during control exercise, from 2.6 +/- 3.4 to 5.6 +/- 4.5, but was less at maximal exercise after nitroglycerin (3.4 +/- 4.0, p less than 0.001). Intra- and interobserver variability in these measurements was acceptable. Thus, quantitation of left ventricular performance during exercise by biapical 2-D echocardiography can be accomplished in a high proportion of patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) and can be used to assess the effects of therapeutic interventions.