Correspondence Between the 17-Segment
Model and Coronary Arterial Anatomy Using
Contrast-Enhanced Cardiac Magnetic
Resonance Imaging
José T. Ortiz-Pérez, MD, José Rodrı ´guez, MD, Sheridan N. Meyers, MD, FACC,
Daniel C. Lee, MD, Charles Davidson, MD, FACC, Edwin Wu, MD
Chicago, Illinois
OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to investigate the correspondence between the
coronary arterial anatomy and supplied myocardium based on the proposed American Heart Association
17-segment model.
BACKGROUND Standardized assignment of coronary arteries to specific myocardial segments is
currently based on empirical assumptions.
METHODS A cardiac magnetic resonance study was performed in 93 subjects following acute
myocardial infarction treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention. Two observers blindly
reviewed all angiograms to examine the location of the culprit lesion and coronary dominancy. Two
additional observers scored for the presence of cardiac magnetic resonance hyperenhancement (HE) on
a 17-segment model. Segments were divided based on anatomical landmarks such as the interventric-
ular grooves and papillary muscles.
RESULTS In a per-segment analysis, 23% of HE segments were discordant with the empirically
assigned coronary distribution. Presence of HE in the basal anteroseptal, mid-anterior, mid-anteroseptal,
or apical anterior wall was 100% specific for left anterior descending artery occlusion. The left anterior
descending artery infarcts frequently involved the mid-anterolateral, apical lateral, and apical inferior
walls. No segment was 100% specific for right coronary artery or left circumflex artery (LCX) occlusion,
although HE in the basal anterolateral wall was highly specific (98%) for LCX occlusion. Combination of
HE in the anterolateral and inferolateral walls was 100% specific for a LCX occlusion, and when extended
to the inferior wall, was also 100% specific for a dominant or codominant LCX occlusion.
CONCLUSIONS Four segments were completely specific for left anterior descending artery
occlusion. No segment can be exclusively attributed to the right coronary artery or LCX occlusion.
However, analysis of adjacent segments increased the specificity for a given coronary occlusion. These
findings bring objective evidence in the appropriate segmentation of coronary arterial perfusion
territories and assist accurate assignment of the culprit vessel in various imaging modalities. (J Am Coll
Cardiol Img 2008;1:282–93) © 2008 by the American College of Cardiology Foundation
From the Feinberg Cardiovascular Research Institute and Division of Cardiology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of
Medicine, and the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, Illinois. Dr. Wu received grants
from the GlaxoSmithKline Research and Education Foundation for Cardiovascular Disease, the American Heart Association
Scientist Development Grant, and the Feinberg Cardiovascular Research Institute and Department of Medicine. Drs.
Ortiz-Pérez and Rodrı ´guez were supported by grants from the Spanish Society of Cardiology.
Manuscript received October 5, 2007; revised manuscript received December 13, 2007, accepted January 3, 2008.
JACC: CARDIOVASCULAR IMAGING VOL. 1, NO. 3, 2008
© 2008 BY THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF CARDIOLOGY FOUNDATION ISSN 1936-878X/08/$34.00
PUBLISHED BY ELSEVIER INC. DOI:10.1016/j.jcmg.2008.01.014
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