The left ventricular regional systolic functions in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) were assessed by using quantitative tissue velocity imaging (QTVI). Left ventricular (LV) regional myocardial velocity along long- and short-axis in 31 HCM patients and 20 healthy subjects were analyzed by QTVI, and the regional myocardial systolic peak velocities ...

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is a major underlying disease that may cause left ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction, even without LV systolic dysfunction, and antihypertensive drugs could affect LV diastolic function. METHODS AND RESULTS: The Effect of Losartan and Amlodipine on Left Ventricular Diastolic Function in Patients With Mild-to-Moderate Hypertension (J-ELAN) study is ...

BACKGROUND: Most patients with growth hormone deficiency (GHD) show high body mass index. Overweight subjects, but GHD patients, were demonstrated to have high left ventricular mass index (LVMi) and abnormal LV geometric remodeling. We sought to study these characteristics in a group of GHD patients, in an attempt to establish ...

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to study the relation between onset and peak time of circumferential shortening and the direction of propagation of these parameters in both ischemic and nonischemic patients. BACKGROUND: Peak time is often used to select patients for cardiac resynchronization therapy, whereas pacing influences only the onset times directly. ...

BACKGROUND: Almost 40% of patients with heart failure (HF) have preserved left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (EF) and prognosis similar to those with reduced EF. Data on prognostic markers in such patients are limited. We analyzed the prevalence and prognostic value of left atrial (LA) size in this condition. METHODS: ...

PURPOSE: To evaluate retrospectively the presence of fibrosis and largest diameter of the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) by using delayed enhancement magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in patients who had undergone initial correction for tetralogy of Fallot. MATERIALS AND METHODS: MR imaging was performed in 24 consecutive patients (16 male, ...

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the changes of flow propagation velocity (FPV) after regular hemodialysis (H/D) in patient who were uremic with different baseline left ventricular (LV) functions. METHODS: In all, 24 patients with uremia and abnormal LV systolic function were enrolled in this study and ...

AIM: To ascertain the presence of LV dysfunction in patients of subclinical hypothyroidism and its reversibility after hormone therapy. METHODS AND METERIAL: Thirty two patients with subclinical hypothyroidism (SH) were included in the study, along with thirty two age and sex matched individuals serving as controls. The patients with SH ...

BACKGROUND: Mediastinal irradiation is known to cause cardiac disease, but its effect on left ventricular diastolic function is unknown. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of diastolic dysfunction and its association with prognosis in asymptomatic patients after mediastinal irradiation. METHODS: We recruited 294 patients who had ...

OBJECTIVE: To describe the spectrum and clinical implications of echocardiographic findings associated with Wegener granulomatosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical records and echocardiographic data of consecutive patients with confirmed Wegener granulomatosis referred to the echocardiography laboratory during the 21-year period from 1976 through 1997. RESULTS: Of the ...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate contractile reserve (CR) determined by exercise echocardiography in predicting clinical outcome and left ventricular (LV) function in asymptomatic severe mitral regurgitation (MR). DESIGN: Cohort study. SETTING: Regional cardiac centre. PATIENTS AND OUTCOME MEASURES: LV volumes and ejection fraction (EF) were measured at rest and after stress in ...

PURPOSE: Trastuzumab is an important biologic agent with significant activity in breast cancers that overexpress the HER2/neu marker. However, trastuzumab is associated with cardiotoxicity that has not yet been fully explored. We present our experience with patients who developed trastuzumab-related cardiotoxicity. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Over a 4-year period, 38 patients ...

Data from USRDS and Thai Renal Replacement Therapy revealed cardiovascular disease is a common cause of death in ESRD patients. Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is one of the risk factors however there are few studies about this in chronic dialysis children. In the present study, the authors retrospectively reviewed the ...

BACKGROUND: Left ventricular diastolic dysfunction has been shown in patients with autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). However, there is no study evaluating right ventricular functions in these patients. METHODS: In the present study, diastolic functions of both ventricles in normotensive and hypertensive ADPKD patients with well-preserved renal function were investigated. ...

OBJECTIVE: The main aim of the study was, to estimate the impact of perfusion defects including significantly depleted areas of varying size on gated perfusion SPECT (GPS) determined ejection fraction (EF) measurements in comparison to radionuclide ventriculography (RVG). A secondary objective was the evaluation of the GPS-RVG agreement of EF ...

The present study evaluated the prevalence of mechanical inter- and intraventricular dyssynchrony in patients with heart failure and preserved left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (LVEF). We studied 138 patients with heart failure (age 67+/-11 years; 76% men); 60 patients had preserved LVEF (>40%). Using conventional Doppler echocardiography, an interventricular mechanical ...

BACKGROUND: Data on the presence of myocardial abnormalities in long-term Hodgkin disease survivors are contradictory. The purpose of this study was to determine if myocardial performance index (MPI) was capable of discovering cardiac abnormalities. PROCEDURE: Echocardiographic evaluation was performed in 31 survivors of Hodgkin disease (mean age 17.0 years), who ...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of respiratory-related ventricular coupling to differentiate patients with constrictive pericarditis (CP) and restrictive cardiomyopathy (RCM). In 18 histologically proven cases of CP, 6 patients with inflammatory pericarditis (IP), 15 RCM patients and 17 normal subjects, real-time cine MRI was performed ...

A large number of patients without symptoms of heart failure (HF) have asymptomatic left ventricular (LV) dysfunction owing to the compensatory mechanisms acting through the autonomic nervous system and neurohormones. In the setting of screening for prevention, one must identify the subgroup of these patients at high risk for symptomatic ...

AIM: Congenital muscular dystrophies (CMD) are a heterogeneous group of diseases characterized by a marked weakness, generalized hypotonia, joint contractures and a muscle biopsy suggestive of dystrophic changes. The aim of this study has been to assess the prevalence of heart involvement in merosin-positive CMD patients examined by echocardiography and ...

OBJECTIVES: We sought to investigate whether myocardial delayed enhancement (MDE) by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) could quantify myocardial fibrosis (MF) in patients with Chagas' heart disease (CHD), thus defining the severity of the disease. BACKGROUND: Myocardial fibrosis secondary to ischemic disease can be imaged using MDE. Advanced CHD is characterized ...

OBJECTIVES: We sought to assess the effect of successful stenting on the Doppler profile of aortic coarctation and to identify echocardiographic indexes that could be used for follow-up of such patients. BACKGROUND: Doppler echocardiography demonstrates characteristic flow patterns in significant aortic coarctation. METHODS: We undertook retrospective echocardiographic analyses before and ...

Normal ejection fraction (EFs) is often equated with normal systolic function. However, midwall mechanics reveal systolic dysfunction in hypertensive heart disease accompanied by hypertrophic remodeling. Midwall mechanics are unstudied in patients with acute diastolic heart failure (HF). This study analyzed left ventricular (LV) midwall stress-shortening relations in 61 patients aged ...

AIMS: Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is a disorder of unknown aetiology with a course and outcome that is largely unpredictable. We evaluated the prognostic role of multiple inflammatory markers in the plasma of a large cohort of African patients with PPCM. METHODS AND RESULTS: The study of 100 patients with newly ...

AIMS: To analyse decision-making in elderly patients with severe, symptomatic aortic stenosis (AS). METHODS AND RESULTS: In the Euro Heart Survey on valvular heart disease, 216 patients aged > or =75 had severe AS (valve area < or =0.6 cm(2)/m(2) body surface area or mean gradient > or =50 mmHg) ...

OBJECTIVE: This study investigates the change in flow propagation velocity (FPV) in uremic patients who undergo regular hemodialysis (H/D). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We studied 93 uremic patients (44 men and 49 women; 59 +/- 14-years-old) receiving regular hemodialysis. Patients were separated by baseline left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF): 71 patients ...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The identification of patients with pulmonary embolism who are at risk for mortality or severe morbidity in the early observation period is important because these patients may benefit from more aggressive initial treatment such as thrombolysis or catheter removal of the thrombus. Right ventricular dysfunction has been ...

The ratio of early (Ep) to late (Ap) color M-mode Doppler flow propagation through the left ventricle helps in the differentiation between normal and pseudonormal (PSN) filling pattern in patients with preserved systolic function. We studied the value of this index in the assessment of diastolic dysfunction for patients with ...

BACKGROUND: The identification of patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (IDC) at higher risk of sudden death (SD) is still an unsolved issue, and the role of non-sustained ventricular tachycardia (NSVT) uncertain. METHODS: The effect of NSVT on total mortality, SD and life-threatening arrhythmias was evaluated in 554 patients with IDC ...

BACKGROUND: Alterations in the balance of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and their specific tissue inhibitors (TIMPs) are involved in left ventricular (LV) remodeling. Whether their expression is related to interstitial fibrosis or LV dysfunction in patients with chronic pressure overload-induced LV hypertrophy, however, is unknown. METHODS AND RESULTS: Therefore, cardiac biopsies ...

Diastolic dysfunction and lack of contractile reserve are unfavorable prognostic predictors in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). This study aims to assess whether diastolic dysfunction and lack of dipyridamole-induced contractile reserve were additive predictors of poor outcome in patients with DCM. A total of 116 patients with DCM and ejection ...

BACKGROUND: Patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) diagnosed by ankle-brachial index evaluation are known to have high cardiovascular mortality. Although this has primarily been attributed to coexistent coronary artery disease, the prevalence of abnormal echocardiographic findings for patients with PAD has not been studied. Our goal was to study the ...

BACKGROUND: Left ventricular mural thrombus (LVMT) is a well-known complication of anterior ST-elevation acute myocardial infraction (AMI). It remains unknown how modern therapies have impacted on its occurrence. OBJECTIVES: To define the frequency of LVMT among contemporary patients with anterior ST-elevation AMI, the clinical and echocardiographic predictors of LVMT formation, ...

BACKGROUND: Cardiopulmonary involvement in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) carries a poor prognosis, mainly due to pulmonary hypertension and right-heart failure. To date, right ventricular (RV) involvement has not been studied in detail. We therefore assessed RV function in patients with SSc and related the findings to the clinical features ...

Atherosclerotic renovascular disease (ARVD) is associated with heart disease. There has been no systematic study of cardiac structure and function in patients with this condition. In this study, the epidemiology of cardiac changes and their relationship to renal function, renovascular anatomy, and BP are delineated. With the use of a ...

AIMS: The clinical outcome of severe acute myocarditis patients with cardiogenic shock who require circulatory support devices is not well known. We studied the survival and clinical courses of patients with fulminant myocarditis supported by percutaneous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) and compared them with those of patients with acute non-fulminant ...

BACKGROUND: Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy (EDMD) characterized by musculoskeletal abnormalities is often associated with atrioventricular conduction disturbances. Although some EDMD patients were reported to develop dilated cardiomyopathy, there are limited data on their left ventricular (LV) performance. METHODS: Therefore, we echocardiographically assessed 27 men (23 cases aged 26.4+/-6.8 years with X-linked, ...

Slow coronary flow (SCF) in a normal-appearing coronary angiogram is a well-recognized clinical entity, but its etiopathogenesis remains unclear. The aim of the study was to evaluate echocardiographic features in patients with SCF. Thirty-four patients with angiographically proven SCF (group I) and 25 patients with normal coronary flow (group II) ...

PURPOSES: We sought to assess the frequency and clinical implications of left ventricular apical ballooning (LVAB) in patients who had been admitted to the medical ICU for noncardiac physical illnesses. METHODS: Ninety-two consecutive patients who were admitted to the medical ICU from March to May 2003 were prospectively enrolled. Patients ...

OBJECTIVES: To determine the frequency of systolic impairment (SI) and its impact on the natural history of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). METHODS: 1080 patients (mean (SD) age 43 (15) years, 660 men) with HCM were evaluated. Initial assessment included history, examination, 48 hour Holter monitoring, cardiopulmonary exercise testing, and echocardiography; SI ...

AIM: To report our data concerning the changes in post-stress and at-rest left ventricular ejection fraction and ventricular volumes in patients with thallium gated SPECT. METHODS: Post-stress and at-rest thallium gated SPECT was performed in 629 consecutive patients; left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular volumes and quantitative perfusion data ...

BACKGROUND: The coronary flow velocity (CFV) has been used to estimate coronary flow reserve (CFR) during dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE). However, the relationship of the CFR to myocardial wall thickening (WT) has not been investigated. OBJECTIVES: The aims of this study were: (1) to assess the feasibility of obtaining systolic ...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence and distribution of gadolinium (Gd) enhancement at cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging in patients with cardiac amyloidosis (CA) and to look for associations with clinical, morphological, and functional features. PATIENTS AND DESIGN: 21 patients with definitely diagnosed CA (nine with immunoglobulin light chain amyloidosis and ...

The objective of this study was to determine the relation between left ventricular (LV) systolic function and the ratio of preceding (RR1) to prepreceding (RR2) R-R intervals in patients with chronic atrial fibrillation (AF) and dilated cardiomyopathy. LV systolic function (Emax) was examined using a conductance catheter with a micromanometer ...

BACKGROUND: The frequency and prognosis of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) caused by secondary hyperparathyroidism (2 degrees HPT) is not known. The purpose of this study was to determine the morbidity of DCM caused by 2 degrees HPT and the efficacy of parathyroidectomy (PTx) in chronic dialysis patients with advanced 2 degrees ...

BACKGROUND: A major goal of revascularization is the recovery of left ventricular (LV) function. Nuclear imaging techniques are widely used for detecting recovery of function with a good sensitivity, but only moderate specificity. Predictors of recovery in chronic total coronary occlusions (CTO) are not investigated. HYPOTHESIS: The 12-lead-resting electrocardiogram (ECG) ...

AIMS: Chagas disease patients often present premature ventricular complexes (PVCs), depression of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and autonomic dysfunction, which is generally evaluated by heart rate variability (HRV) analysis. As frequent PVCs may complicate HRV computation, we measured heart rate turbulence (HRT) and evaluated the correlation between ejection fraction ...

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate whether the prognostic importance of left ventricular (LV) outflow obstruction in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is influenced by other predictors of morbidity and mortality. BACKGROUND: It remains unknown whether the effect of outflow obstruction on clinical outcome in HCM is influenced by ...

OBJECTIVES: This study was carried out to assess the repeatability of left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) and volume values obtained using Cedars-Sinai quantitative gated single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) (QGS) software and relatively low doses of 400-600 MBq of 99mTc-tetrofosmin. METHODS: Repeatability was assessed in a group of 75 ...

OBJECTIVES: We sought to examine the relationship of the mitral L wave with echocardiographic indexes of diastolic function and heart failure (HF) events in patients with left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy (LVH). BACKGROUND: The L wave, representing middiastolic transmitral flow, is of unknown clinical and prognostic significance in patients with LVH. ...