Two-dimensional assessment of right ventricular function: an echocardiographic-MRI correlative study

While echocardiography is used most frequently to assess right ventricular (RV) function in clinical practice, echocardiography is limited in its ability to provide an accurate measure of RV ejection fraction (RVEF). Hence, quantitative estimation of RV function has proven difficult in clinical practice.

We sought to determine which commonly used echocardiographic measures of RV function were most accurate in comparison with an MRI-derived estimate of RVEF.

We analyzed RV function in 36 patients who had cardiac MRI studies and echocardiograms within a 24 hour period. 2D parameters of RV function-right ventricular fractional area change (RVFAC), tricuspid annular motion (TAM), and transverse fractional shortening (TFS) were obtained from the four-chamber view. RV volumes and EFs were derived from volumetric reconstruction based on endocardial tracing of the RV chamber from the short axis images. Echocardiographic assessment of RV function was correlated with MRI findings.

RVFAC measured by echocardiography correlated best with MRI-derived RVEF (r = 0.80, P < 0.001). Neither TAM (r = 0.17; P = 0.30) nor TFC (r = 0.12; p< 0.38) were significantly correlated with RVEF.

RVFAC is the best of commonly utilized echocardiographic 2D measure of RV function and correlated best with MRI-derived RV ejection fraction.

While echocardiography is used most frequently to assess RV function in clinical practice, echocardiography is limited in its ability to provide an accurate measure of RV ejection fraction (RVEF). Using cardiac MRI, RV fractional area change (RVFAC), determined either by MRI or echocardiography, was found to correlate best with MRI-derived RVEF.