Imagify™ (perflubutane polymer microspheres) injectable suspension for the assessment of coronary artery disease

Abstract

Myocardial contrast echocardiography is a rapidly evolving technique for the assessment of myocardial perfusion. Many studies have indicated their ability to detect flow-limiting coronary artery disease. Imagify™ (perflubutane polymer microspheres) injectable suspension, also known as AI-700, is a new ultrasound contrast agent that satisfies all the characteristics of an ideal agent for the assessment of myocardial perfusion. Preliminary studies with Imagify indicate that it is comparable with radionuclide perfusion techniques (presently the most widely used imaging technique to assess coronary artery disease) without the disadvantages of radiation and lack of availability at the bedside. This article provides an overview of Imagify, a new ultrasound contrast agent.

Keywords::

• coronary heart disease
• diagnostic accuracy
• efficacy
• Imagify™
• pharmakokinetics
• safety
• ultrasound contrast

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Richard Walovitch and Asli Memisoglu from Acusphere Inc. for providing information and figures as well as helpful comments.