Cesar Castilla likes to relax with his family. You'd never know it now, but he was anything but relaxed a few weeks prior when he thought he was having a heart attack: "I HAVE THE CONCERN BECAUSE MY FAMILY HISTORY AND BECAUSE OF MY AGE ETCETERA…" The sharp pain searing his left arm and shoulder led him to the emergency room of the Chest Pain Center at Oregon's Health and Science University. By using a technology he helped to develop, Cardiologist Kevin Wei was able to rule out what Castilla feared most: "AND WE FOUND THAT, IN FACT, HIS HEART MUSCLE FUNCTION AND THE BLOOD SUPPLY TO ALL AREAS OF THE HEART MUSCLE WERE NORMAL AND SO THIS ALLOWED US TO EXCLUDE A HEART ATTACK AS A CAUSE OF HIS SYMPTOMS." Myocardial Contrast Echocardiography, or M-C-E for short, is a cutting edge treatment that allows trained cardiologists to diagnose heart problems quickly. Tiny bubbles roughly the size of red blood cells are filled with an inert gas and injected into the veins. These microbubbles have acoustic properties which make it easier to get an ultrasound image of the heart. "…WHICH IS THE MOST COMPLEX ORGAN IN TERMS OF IMAGING BECAUSE THE HEART MOVES AND SHAKES AND CONTRACTS AND MOVES WITH RESPIRATION SO IT'S HARD TO FOLLOW." Following the movement of the heart in real time is a significant advance over traditional imaging techniques... EVEN THE TESTS THAT WE USE SUCH AS THE ELECTRIC CARDIOGRAM MAY NOT READ ABNORMAL IN UP TO THIRTY PERCENT OF PATIENTS WHO ARE ACTUALLY HAVING A HEART ATTACK. SO WE HAVE A LOT OF TOOLS WHICH AREN'T VERY SENSITIVE OR WHICH TAKE TIME TO BECOME POSITIVE." Leading researchers in the field are hopeful microbubble technology may soon be used for targeted drug delivery: "SO FOR EXAMPLE THE CANCER IS GROWING AND IT IS BECAUSE OF ALL THESE BLOOD VESSELS. SO IF WE CHOKE OFF THESE BLOOD VESSELS THE CANCER CAN'T GROW. SO IN THE BUBBLES WE PUT A DRUG AND WHEN THE BUBBLES GET TO THIS ABNORMAL AREA OF FLOW WE ZAP IT WITH ULTRASOUND SO THEN THE BUBBLE BURSTS AND THIS RELEASES THE DRUG LOCALLY AND THE DRUG CAN PRODUCE CLOTTING OF THIS BLOOD VESSEL." In the meantime, patients like Cesar Castilla are happy to get back to those who love them—without a lengthy hospital stay.