Table 1.
Comparative summary of the strength, weakness, reproducibility and operator-dependency of each method used to assess coronary microvascular function in clinical practice
| Availability | Repeatability | Costs | Risks | Reproducibility and operator dependance | CMV dilatation | CMV constriction | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Invasive methodsa | +/− | − | −− | +/−− | + | +++ | +++ |
| TTDE | +++ | +++ | +++ | +++ | +/− | ++ | +/− |
| MCE | +/− | +/− | + | + | +/− | ++ | +/− |
| PET | − | − | − | +/− | ++ | +++ | +/− |
| CMR | + | +/− | − | + | ++ | +++ | +/− |
(−) = poor for the item; (+) = sufficient for the item; (++) = good for the item; (+++) = very good for the item; (+/−) = between sufficient/poor.
CMR, cardiac magnetic resonance; CMV, coronary microvascular; IIM, invasive intracoronary methods; MCE, myocardial contrast echocardiography; PET, positron emission tomography; TTDE, transthoracic Doppler echocardiography.
a
Include intracoronary Doppler recording of coronary blood flow velocity and thermodilution method (see text for discussion).