Mitral annulus motion versus long-axis fractional shortening

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Medical Imaging
• Physiology

Background:

• Echocardiography commonly assesses left ventricular (LV) systolic function using mitral annulus motion (MAM) and ejection fraction (EF).
• MAM measures distance, while EF is a volume ratio, posing theoretical limitations for direct comparison.
• Long-axis fractional shortening (FS(L)), a length-based ratio, may offer a more appropriate comparison to EF.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the correlation between EF and MAM with the correlation between EF and FS(L) in evaluating LV systolic function.
• To determine the more suitable echocardiographic index for LV systolic function assessment.

Main Methods:

• Echocardiography was performed on 30 healthy subjects.
• Linear correlations were calculated between EF and MAM.
• Linear correlations were calculated between EF and FS(L).

Main Results:

• A higher linear correlation was observed between EF and FS(L) (r=0.65; P<0.001) compared to EF and MAM (r=0.49; P<0.01).
• The results indicate a stronger association between EF and the length-corrected index, FS(L).

Conclusions:

• FS(L) demonstrates a stronger correlation with EF than MAM, suggesting it is a more suitable index for LV systolic function.
• Incorporating ventricular length correction, as in FS(L), enhances its utility in echocardiographic assessment of LV systolic function.