Relationship between tissue Doppler-derived RV systolic function and invasive hemodynamic measurements

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Echocardiography
• Veterinary Medicine

Background:

• Right ventricular (RV) function assessment is crucial in cardiovascular diagnostics.
• Tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) offers a non-invasive method for evaluating RV function.
• The correlation between invasive hemodynamic parameters and RV-TDI measurements requires further elucidation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between invasive RV pressure measurements and TDI-derived parameters.
• To assess the utility of TDI-derived systolic myocardial (Sa) velocity and myocardial performance index (MPI) in predicting RV systolic function.
• To evaluate the impact of dobutamine and esmolol on RV function as measured by invasive and non-invasive methods.

Main Methods:

• Seven beagles underwent anesthesia and right lateral recumbency.
• A micromanometer-tipped catheter was placed in the RV for hemodynamic monitoring.
• Pulsed Doppler (PD) and TDI measurements were performed, along with intravenous infusions of dobutamine and esmolol.

Main Results:

• Dobutamine significantly decreased both PD- and TDI-MPI and increased Sa velocity.
• Sa velocity strongly correlated with the peak positive derivative of RV pressure (+dP/dt; r = 0.93).
• TDI-MPI showed a stronger negative correlation with +dP/dt (r = -0.86) than PD-MPI (r = -0.54).
• Sa velocity and PD-derived isovolumic contraction time predicted +dP/dt (r = 0.94).

Conclusions:

• TDI-derived Sa velocity and MPI are strongly correlated with RV contractility.
• These TDI parameters effectively predict RV systolic function.
• TDI is a valuable tool for non-invasively assessing RV systolic function.