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Pulsed Wave Doppler Assessment of Diastolic Dysfunction in the ZSF-1 Rat Model of Pulmonary Hypertension Due to Left Heart Disease
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Pulsed Wave Doppler Assessment of Diastolic Dysfunction in the ZSF-1 Rat Model of Pulmonary Hypertension Due to Left Heart Disease

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Diastolic dysfunction precedes myocardial hypertrophy in the development of hypertension

B C Aeschbacher1, D Hutter, J Fuhrer

  • 1Department of Cardiology, Swiss Cardiovascular Center Bern, University Hospital, Switzerland.

American Journal of Hypertension
|March 13, 2001
PubMed

Insights

Young men with a genetic risk for hypertension showed early signs of diastolic dysfunction on echocardiograms over five years. These changes occurred without increased left ventricular mass, even in those who developed mild hypertension.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • Hypertension Research
  • Echocardiography

Background:

  • Systemic hypertension can lead to early left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy and diastolic dysfunction.
  • Longitudinal studies investigating these early changes are limited.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To longitudinally assess echocardiographic changes in LV diastolic function in young, normotensive men with a parental history of hypertension.
  • To compare these changes with offspring of normotensive parents over a 5-year period.

Main Methods:

  • A 5-year follow-up echocardiographic study was conducted on young, initially normotensive male offspring of hypertensive (OHyp) and normotensive (ONorm) parents.
  • Measurements included blood pressure, LV mass, mitral inflow, pulmonary vein flow, and septal myocardial Doppler imaging.

Main Results:

  • At follow-up, blood pressure did not differ significantly between groups, though five OHyp developed mild hypertension.
  • Left ventricular mass index remained unchanged and similar between groups.
  • Diastolic function showed alterations in OHyp, including prolonged mitral E deceleration time and pulmonary vein reverse A wave duration.
  • These diastolic alterations were more pronounced in OHyp who developed hypertension, despite similar LV mass.

Conclusions:

  • Young men with a genetic predisposition to hypertension exhibit Doppler echocardiographic evidence of LV diastolic dysfunction over 5 years.
  • These diastolic alterations occur without significant changes in LV mass and are more pronounced in individuals who develop hypertension.
Abstract

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