Left ventricular diastolic function in systemic sclerosis: assessment by radionuclide angiography

The aim of this study was to assess left ventricular function in subjects with systemic sclerosis. Twenty-four women with systemic sclerosis (mean age 48 +/- 11 yr) and 14 age- and sex-matched normal subjects were studied by radionuclide angiography performed at rest with a temporal resolution of 20 msec/frame. Left ventricular volume curves were generated and indices of systolic and diastolic function were computed. Left ventricular diastolic asynchrony was evaluated by dividing the left ventricle into five regions and then computing the time-to-peak filling rate for each region. After excluding the valvular region, the coefficient of variation of this index was obtained. The isovolumic relaxation period was prolonged in systemic sclerosis patients in comparison to normal subjects (127 +/- 39 msec versus 87 +/- 44 msec, p less than 0.05). Moreover, 38% of the systemic sclerosis patients had a subnormal peak filling rate. Left ventricular diastolic asynchrony was increased in the systemic sclerosis group, as expressed by a higher coefficient of variation of the regional time to peak filling rate (27.9% +/- 11.5% versus 14.5% +/- 8.6%, p less than 0.05). Our results indicate an impaired relaxation and an increased diastolic asynchrony in patients with systemic sclerosis.