Live/real time three-dimensional transesophageal echocardiographic assessment of the spinal cord.

We present an adult patient in whom live/real time three-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography (3DTEE) provided incremental value in the assessment of the spinal cord as compared to two-dimensional transesophageal echocardiographic (2DTEE) findings published in the literature. It improved accurate identification and assessment of the anterior radiculomedullary spinal arteries which may have an important clinical application in monitoring for spinal cord ischemia during thoracic aortic surgery. Because the spinal cord and spinal canal could be examined using not only transverse but also coronal (frontal), sagittal, and oblique planes, 3DTEE further allowed for three-dimensional measurements of the dimensions and volumetric analysis of the visualized spinal cord and spinal canal. These may have implications in the assessment of spinal cord edema due to trauma and other conditions which result in increase in the size and volume of the spinal cord.