Progress of assessment methods on myocardial microcirculation dysfunction

In recent years, morbidity and mortality of coronary heart disease has been increasing. With the popularization of percutaneous coronary intervention and the understanding of the coronary slow flow phenomenon, myocardial microcirculation is an increasing concern of clinicians. At present, methods of assessing myocardial microcirculation include fractional flow reserve, myocardial contrast echocardiography, magnetic resonance imaging, and indexing of microcirculatory resistance. However, existing methods have their own limitations and some indicators are necessary to be further verified in terms of specificity and sensitivity. In this article, we review the progress of assessment methods on myocardial microcirculation dysfunction.