American Journal of Roentgenology, Vol 161, 497-500, Copyright © 1993 by American Roentgen Ray Society
Imaging to distinguish between viable and nonviable myocardium: pathophysiologic basis and importance of positron emission tomography
RJ Gropler
Edward Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110.
One goal of strategies designed to restore nutritive perfusion in patients
with left ventricular dysfunction attributable to coronary artery disease
is salvage of reversibly ischemic myocardium in an effort to improve
patients' left ventricular function, signs and symptoms, and survival.
Accurate identification of patients likely to benefit from interventions
such as coronary revascularization requires the differentiation of viable
(reversibly dysfunctional) myocardium from nonviable (persistently
dysfunctional) tissue. To date, no consensus has been reached regarding the
best approach for achieving this differentiation. In this review, the
pathophysiologic characteristics of viable and nonviable myocardium are
summarized, and diagnostic methods that exploit these characteristics for
the purposes of detecting viable myocardium are discussed. Emphasis is
placed on approaches that use positron emission tomography because of its
usefulness in quantifying those specific metabolic processes that support
both tissue viability and the capacity for functional recovery.