Percutaneous balloon valvuloplasty for pulmonic stenosis: the role of multimodality imaging.

Pulmonic valvular stenosis represents the most frequent cause of right ventricular outflow obstruction. Transthoracic echocardiography is the imaging modality of choice in the diagnosis, evaluation and longitudinal follow-up of individuals with pulmonic stenosis (PS). Although valvular PS is usually diagnosed by two-dimensional imaging, Doppler echocardiography allows for the quantification of severity of the valvular lesion. In patients with limited acoustic windows, computed tomography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging may provide complementary anatomical characterization of the pulmonic annulus and valve prior to percutaneous balloon valvuloplasty.