Respective Timing of Maximal Color Doppler Jet Areas and of Peak Velocity of Jets in Left-sided Valvular Lesions: Clinical Implications

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Time intervals between the R wave of the electrocardiogram and maximal dimension of jet areas of color Doppler and the R wave of the electrocardiogram and peak velocity of valvular jets of continuous-wave Doppler were compared by use of paired and correlative studies for a group of 55 patients with a total of 71 left-sided lesions. Mean values of both time intervals, mean difference, and its standard error were equal to zero for stenoses. Time intervals of 71% for mitral stenosis and 52% for aortic stenosis did not differ by more than 0.01 second; correlation coefficients were 0.96 for mitral stenosis and 0.85 for aortic stenosis. For regurgitations, differences in mean values and a mean difference with a standard error were found but remained unsignificant. However, the percentage of differences in time intervals below or equal to 0.01 second decreased to 35 for aortic regurgitation and 13 for mitral regurgitation, which showed the widest 95% range of differences. Correlation coefficients were 0.84 for the aortic regurgitation and 0.33 for mitral regurgitation. Thus the close relationship of time intervals suggests that standardized timing of area measurements at peak velocity is feasible for stenoses and remains under consideration for aortic regurgitation. Timing of measurements should remain empiric for mitral regurgitation.