Stress echocardiography and invasive coronary angiography in the current diagnostic algorithm for coronary artery disease (A case of Vladivostok Clinical Hospital No. 1)

Abstract

Stress echocardiography (Stress-ECHOCG) is a noninvasive method for diagnosing coronary artery disease (CAD) that allows for the detection of transient abnormalities in local contractility during exercise. Objective: To evaluate the role of stress echocardiography in diagnosing stable coronary artery disease (CAD) compared to invasive coronary angiography (ICA). Materials and methods. Stress-ECHOCG was performed on 34 patients with suspected CAD at the Functional Diagnostics Department of Vladivostok Clinical Hospital No 1. The Stress-ECHOCG results were then compared with those of ICA. Results. The sensitivity of stress echocardiography was 96.8%, and the positive predictive value was 90.9%. A positive stress echocardiogram was associated with stenoses in the basins of the anterior descending artery (r = 0.91), the circumflex artery (r = 0.89), and the right coronary artery (r = 0.91). Conclusion. Stress echocardiography plays a crucial role in the diagnostic algorithm for coronary artery disease, offering high accuracy and safety. Using stress echocardiography helps optimize patient selection for invasive testing and reduces the number of unnecessary coronary angiograms.