Abstract

RENDON, Jairo A; RESTREPO, Gustavo  and  DUARTE, Néstor R. Assessment of the right ventricle contractile function by two dimensional speckle tracking in a population with pulmonary hypertension. Rev. Colomb. Cardiol. [online]. 2012, vol.19, n.5, pp.217-222. ISSN 0120-5633.

Quantification of right ventricular function continues to evolve, even though his assessment is difficult due to the complex geometry of this cardiac chamber. OBJECTIVE: to characterize right ventricular function by calculating the strain, the longitudinal strain rate of the right ventricular free wall and the ejection fraction and volumes of the ventricle through assessment of the strain by two-dimensional speckle tracking, and to compare it with tricuspid annulus peak systolic excursion (TAPSE) in patients with pulmonary hypertension and in healthy population. METHODS: observational descriptive study. RESULTS: We included 120 patients, of whom 80 suffered from pulmonary hypertension and 40 were healthy. The overall strain of the right ventricular free wall was significantly lower in the group with pulmonary hypertension compared to healthy subjects (-20.5 ± 6 vs. -25 ± 4.5; p <0.001); regional strain showed similar behavior. The overall longitudinal strain rate showed no significant differences between groups. We found a significant correlation between TAPSE and ejection fraction of the right ventricle (r = 0.49; p <0.001) and an inverse correlation between TAPSE and global longitudinal strain of the right ventricle free wall (r = -0.41; p <0.001). CONCLUSION: the assessment of regional right ventricular function by two dimensional speckle tracking can be a useful tool for assessing right ventricular systolic function in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Keywords : ventricular function; echocardiography; pulmonary arterial hypertension.

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