99 Bulgarian Journal of Agricultural Science, 16 (No 1) 2010, 99-104 Agricultural Academy ULTRASONOGRAPHY-AIDED ANATOMICAL INVESTIGATION OF THE HEART AND SOME PELVIC ORGANS D. VLADOVA and M. STEFANOV Trakia University, Department of Animal Morphology, Physiology and Nutrition, Faculty of Agriculture, BG - 6000 Stara Zagora, Bulgaria Abstract VLADOVA, D. and M. STEFANOV, 2010. Ultrasonography-aided anatomical investigation of the heart and some pelvic organs. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 16: 99-104 Echography or ultrasonography is commonly utilized in imaging anatomy and diagnostics of internal diseases; Echography has enhanced the process of diagnostics, increased the options for morphological and functional evaluation of organs, has replaced other techniques of examination and allowed the performance of diagnostic and therapeutic manipulations under real-time ultrasound-guided control. The ultrasonographic images depict the cross sectional anatomy of a given anatomical area or organ. Echocardiography is a technique using ultrasound for examination of the heart and the large blood vessels. The identification of cardiac structures and other organs is important for achieving a general picture, localization of a specific process and deviations from the normal image of the organ. Ultrasonography is a non-invasive technique for visualization of benign and malignant lesions of accessory sex glands in both animals and men. The early detection of abnormalities of prostate and bulboure- thral glands in cats is essential for the normal reproduction in this carnivore species. Key words: ultrasonography, imaging anatomy, thorax, pelvis, cat e-mail: diana_vladova@abv.bg Introduction During the recent years, ultrasonography is more and more widely used in diagnostics of internal dis- eases. It has speeded up the process of diagnostics, has provided more opportunities for morphological and functional evaluation of the status of organs and allowed the performance of ultrasound-guided diag- nostic and therapeutic procedures. Ultrasonography of the heart Ultrasonography provides morphological and func- tional information about cardiac structures (Lee, 1995). The adequate knowledge of topographic anatomy is essential for the proper orientation during the examination. The echographic image presents the cross-sectional anatomy of a given organ or body area. The identification of cardiac structures and other or- gans is important for achieving general information, for the topography of a given process and for detec- tion of deviations from the normal image of a given organ (Tomov and Naumov, 1992). The contemporary imaging methods, ultrasonog- raphy in particular, have the advantage of offering non- invasive means for examination of structures, organs and body cavities. The increased interest towards