Abstract

Phase and amplitude analysis was applied to intravenous digital left ventriculograms to avoid the artefacts associated with image subtraction. Eight controls and 40 patients with known coronary artery disease underwent digital left ventriculography before and after a symptom limited supine bicycle exercise test. The resultant images were subjected to phase and amplitude analyses. In the control group there was no deterioration in left ventricular wall motion after exercise. In 30 of the 40 patients there was a deterioration in wall motion on exercise. This group contained all eight patients with three vessel disease and 12 of the 17 patients with two vessel disease. Ten patients showed no change in wall motion--five with one vessel disease and five with two vessel disease. Phase and amplitude analysis of digital left ventriculograms is a method of detecting exercise induced myocardial ischaemia that may help in the assessment of patients with coronary artery disease.