Three dimensional reconstruction of cross sectional intracoronary ultrasound: clinical or research tool?

In a recent survey conducted in 30 centres with large experience in intracoronary ultra- sound, three dimensional reconstruction of intracoronary ultrasound was ranked as the technical development with the lowest priority,' suggesting that it is perceived by most users of intracoronary ultrasound as a research tool with limited clinical relevance.However, although cross sectional ultrasound provides unique information on lumen and wall pathology, it cannot determine the spatial relationships among multiple ultrasonic cross sections.The need to examine vessel architec- ture longitudinally explains the many efforts to develop methods of three dimensional reconstruction of intracoronary ultrasound images.