Feasibility of regional and global left ventricular shape analysis from real-time 3d echocardiography

Combined assessment of left ventricular (LV) shape and function could provide new insights into the process of LV remodeling. Real-time 3D echocardiography (RT3DE) allows rapid and accurate semi-automated extraction of LV endocardial surfaces. Our aims were to quantify LV morphology both globally and regionally, using new ellipsoidal (E), spherical (S) and conical (C) shape indices, in a large population in order to define normal values. During systole the LV became less spherical and more conical, while E index remained unchanged. LV volume estimation was more affected by operator subjectivity than C and S indexes computation. These results constitute a reference for future comparisons with serial follow-up of patients during LV remodeling.