To determine if left ventricular (LV) diastolic filling abnormalities are detectable by Doppler echocardiography in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD), 34 patients with CAD and 24 normal, age-matched control subjects underwent mitral valve pulsed Doppler examination. At catheterization, all CAD patients had typical angina, at least 70% diameter narrowing of 1 major coronary artery, ejection fraction of 50% or more and no valvular heart disease. Seventeen CAD patients underwent coronary angioplasty and had a Doppler examination 1 day before and 1 day after the procedure. Doppler diastolic time intervals, peak velocities at rapid filling (E velocity), atrial contraction (A velocity) and the ratio peak E/peak A velocities were measured. The following areas under the Doppler velocity envelope and their percentage of the total area were calculated: first third of diastole (0.33 area), triangular area under the peak E velocity (E area), and triangular area under the peak A velocity (A area). Patients with CAD and normal subjects were significantly different (p less than 0.01) in peak E velocity (CAD 0.60 +/- 0.12 m/s, normal 0.68 +/- 0.12 m/s), peak A velocity (CAD 0.59 +/- 0.12 m/s, normal 0.48 +/- 0.11 m/s), ratio peak E/peak A velocities (CAD 1.0 +/- 0.27, normal 1.5 +/- 0.32), A area (CAD 0.052 +/- 0.015 m, normal 0.036 +/- 0.010 m), ratio E area/A area (CAD 1.7 +/- 0.53, normal 2.5 +/- 0.69), and all area fractions. In the CAD patients who had undergone coronary angioplasty, no differences were found in any Doppler index before and immediately after the procedure.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)