Echocardiography, a non-invasive method for the assessment of cardiac function and morphology in preclinical drug toxicology and safety pharmacology

Background: Echocardiography (EC) is a method used for the investigation of cardiac morphology and function. Two-dimensional EC gives a visualisation of the morphology of the heart. M-mode EC allows heart function to be monitored. Pulsed Doppler EC is the method of choice to measure blood flows. Objective: To describe the information EC can provide for cardiovascular investigation in laboratory animals, with a special focus on the potential helpfulness of EC in preclinical toxicology and safety pharmacology. Methods: This review includes publications describing the methodology of EC and its application to several animal species used in biological experimentation. Results/conclusion: EC has been established in dogs, monkeys, rodents, rabbits and pigs. As demonstrated by experiments in different species, EC can be particularly helpful in toxicology and safety pharmacology, based on the amount of information it can give on the causes and consequences of drug adverse effects on the cardiovascular system. Furthermore, EC does not require any surgery and is therefore a key refinement compared to invasive methods generally used for investigating the cardiovascular function in laboratory animals. Despite some limitations of the method (the need for trained people, time required for an accurate EC recording, lack of current validation), EC should be further developed in preclinical toxicology and safety pharmacology.