Perflenapent emulsion (EchoGen): a new long-acting phase-shift agent for contrast echocardiography.

Perflenapent emulsion (EchoGen, SONUS Pharmaceuticals, Bothell, Wash.) is a phase-shift colloid that is the first of a new class of intravenously injectable fluorocarbon-based ultrasound contrast agents, representing a significant advance in contrast echocardiography. Unlike currently available contrast agents, perflenapent emulsion effectively opacifies the left ventricle and enhances endocardial border delineation. The persistence of the contrast effect permits interrogation in multiple echocardiographic views. Perflenapent emulsion should permit the use of echocardiography to visualize and localize myocardial perfusion deficits at rest by producing a negative contrast effect, allowing physicians to diagnose coronary artery disease, including the extent of a lesion's impact on the perfusion of the myocardium, in a timely and cost-efficient manner. Perflenapent emulsion is also easy to use and requires no preparation, reconstitution, or refrigeration.