Analysis of right ventricular Doppler tissue imaging and load dependence in patients undergoing percutaneous closure...

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Echocardiography
• Cardiac Physiology

Background:

• Atrial septal defect (ASD) can lead to right ventricular (RV) volume overload.
• Doppler tissue imaging (DTI) assesses myocardial velocities and cardiac function.
• Understanding RV behavior post-ASD closure is crucial for patient management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the load dependency of RV myocardial velocities after device closure in ASD patients.
• To evaluate the impact of ASD occluder devices on RV function.

Main Methods:

• Utilized Doppler tissue imaging (DTI) to measure E'/A' ratios and myocardial velocities.
• Analyzed RV myocardial velocities in relation to volume load before and after device closure.
• Correlated RV dimensions with regional velocities in patients with varying baseline E'/A' ratios.

Main Results:

• Patients with baseline E'/A' <1 showed load-independent RV velocities post-closure.
• Patients with baseline E'/A' >1 exhibited load-dependent velocities, correlating with RV dimension.
• RV DTI velocities remained within normal limits one month after ASD closure.

Conclusions:

• RV myocardial velocity behavior post-ASD closure depends on baseline E'/A' ratio.
• Device closure normalizes RV velocities, suggesting load independence in some patients.
• Cardiac function is not adversely affected by the occluder device one month after ASD closure.