Systematic Reviews
Copyright ©2014 Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Radiol. Jul 28, 2014; 6(7): 502-506
Published online Jul 28, 2014. doi: 10.4329/wjr.v6.i7.502
Usefulness of myocardial positron emission tomography/nuclear imaging in Takotsubo cardiomyopathy
Marzia Testa, Mauro Feola
Marzia Testa, Mauro Feola, Cardiovascular Rehabilitation, Heart Failure Unit, 12045 Fossano, Italy
Marzia Testa, School of Geriatry, Universita’ degli Studi di Torino, Torino 10126, Italy
Author contributions: Testa M wrote the manuscript; Feola M wrote and edited the manuscript.
Correspondence to: Feola Mauro, MD, FESC, Cardiovascular Rehabilitation, Heart Failure Unit, Ospedale SS Trinita’, Via Ospedale 4, 12045 Fossano, Italy. m_feola@virgilio.it
Telephone: +39-0172-699365 Fax: +39-0172-699364
Received: January 21, 2014
Revised: May 28, 2014
Accepted: June 14, 2014
Published online: July 28, 2014
Core Tip

Core tip: Takotsubo cardiomyopathy is a cardiac syndrome with symptoms similar to acute myocardial infarction (MI) including chest pain and electrocardiographic changes, in absence of coronary artery stenosis. This syndrome is characterized by reversible wall-motion abnormalities involving apical and midportion of left ventricle. In the acute phase it is clinically indistinguishable from acute MI but, recently, myocardial positron emission tomography have demonstrated to delineate this syndrome from acute coronary artery disease, also offering a new pathophysiological explanation for this particular syndrome. This clinical review aimed to summarise the most significant experiences on the use of myocardial positron emission tomography in Takotsubo cardiomyopathy.