Tissue Doppler Echocardiography Contribution to the Diagnosis of Upper Extremities Venous Thrombosis

• Published in: Echocardiography (Mount Kisco, N.Y.) Vol. 17; no. 8; pp. 721 - 723
• Main Authors: Lazaros, George, Matsakas, Evangellos, Karavidas, Apostolos, Panou, Fotis, Fotiadis, Ioannis, Zacharoulis, Apostolos
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-11-2000
• Subjects: Adult; Arm; Echocardiography - methods; Echocardiography, Doppler, Color - methods; Humans; Jugular Veins - diagnostic imaging; Male; Sensitivity and Specificity; thrombolysis; tissue Doppler echocardiography; upper extremities vein thrombosis; Venous Thrombosis - diagnostic imaging
• ISSN: 0742-2822; 1540-8175
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-8175.2000.tb01225.x

We present the case of a 35‐year‐old man with a history of β‐thalassemia complicated with heart failure who was admitted to our department because of right arm painful swelling. A transthoracic echo‐Doppler study revealed a mass within the right jugular vein (RJV) lumen and absence of flow within the right subclavian vein (RSV). Subsequently, color tissue Doppler echocardiography clearly demonstrated the intraluminal mass by means of its different color hues as compared with the surrounding vessel wall, further enforcing the suspicion of upper extremity vein thrombosis (UEVT). It is emphasized that tissue Doppler echocardiography, a safe and reproducible method, can contribute to the diagnosis of UEVT.