In three patients undergoing mitral balloon valvuloplasty for mitral stenosis transesophageal echocardiography was performed before, immediately after, and 6 months after the procedure. In the one patient with persistent hemodynamically favorable result, the spontaneous echocardiographic contrast, which was seen in all three preoperatively, did not recur; in the other two patients the phenomenon was observed again after 6 months. We conclude that the disappearance of spontaneous echocardiographic contrast might be a functional morphological measure of sustained hemodynamic improvement after balloon mitral valvuloplasty. Copyright

doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-8183.1990.tb00969.x, hdl.handle.net/1765/94093
Journal of Interventional Cardiology: an international forum for global cardiovascular therapies
Department of Cardiology

Slagboom, T., Taams, M., Vletter, W., Sutherland, G., de Feyter, P., & Serruys, P. (1990). Disappearance of Spontaneous Echographic Contrast after Balloon Mitral Valvuloplasty: An Indicator of Sustained Hemodynamic Improvement. Journal of Interventional Cardiology: an international forum for global cardiovascular therapies, 3(2), 109–112. doi:10.1111/j.1540-8183.1990.tb00969.x