Assessment of Subendocardial Structure and Function

JACC Cardiovasc Imaging. 2010; 3(8):867-875

Stanton T, Marwick TH

The combination of high energy expenditure and the borderline adequacy of perfusion make the subendocardium uniquely vulnerable to injury.  Selective subendocardial involvement is usually a marker of subclinical disease.

Technical advances in new noninvasive imaging modalities, especially in spatial resolution, now permit qualitative and quantitative assessment of subendocardial structure, function, and perfusion.  Many newer techniques have the potential to provide superior prognostic information to current standard assessment methods.  This review describes the contemporary capabilities of multiple imaging modalities for assessment of the subendocardium, and seeks to guide the clinician regarding the information and technical deficiencies of each modality.

PMID: 20705269

One Response

  1. Jacobo Kirsch, MD  on September 15th, 2010

    Fantastic review! Thorough and easy to read. This paper aims at summarizing all the different imaging modalities that we can use to assess the subendocardium (both the pros and cons). The premise is that knowing this concepts will help us to better understand the progression of disease from diastolic dysfunction to overt systolic heart failure.


Leave a Reply