Comparative Study of High-resolution Microimaging with 30-MHz Scanner for Evaluating Cardiac Function in Mice.
Okajima K, Abe Y, Fujimoto K, Fujikura K, Girard EE, Asai T, Kwon SH, Jin Z, Nakamura Y, Yoshiyama M, Homma S.
Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Columbia University, New York, New York.
J Am Soc Echocardiogr. 2007 Jun 22; [Epub ahead of print]

• > BACKGROUND: The accurate assessment of cardiac function in mice is challenging because of their small heart size and rapid heart rate. METHODS: We examined the usefulness of novel high-resolution echocardiography (HRE) (Vevo 770 micro-ultrasound, VisualSonics) with a 30-MHz transducer in evaluating cardiac function in 20 mice compared with conventional echocardiography (CE) with a 13-MHz transducer. The left ventricular (LV) regional wall motion (RWM), LV end-diastolic dimension, fractional shortening, anterior LV wall thickness, E/A, and myocardial performance index were assessed. RESULTS: RWM analysis was more feasible by HRE than by CE (P < .05). Interobserver agreement in RWM analysis and correlation in LV end-diastolic dimension, fractional shortening, anterior LV wall thickness, E/A, and myocardial performance index were all better with HRE than CE. CONCLUSIONS: HRE is superior to CE in assessing LV function in mice. HRE is potentially a useful method for accurate assessment of cardiac function in various mice models.