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Transthoracic Speckle Tracking Echocardiography for the Quantitative Assessment of Left Ventricular Myocardial Deformation
Published on: October 20, 2016
Speckle tracking for the intraoperative assessment of right ventricular function: a feasibility study
Claude Tousignant1, Matthias Desmet, Richard Bowry
1Department of Anesthesia, The Keenan Research Center at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St Michael's Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia
|January 9, 2010
Summary
Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) allows feasible perioperative measurement of right ventricular (RV) longitudinal strain in ventilated patients. TEE demonstrated a higher success rate for RV strain analysis compared to transthoracic echocardiography (TTE).
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Ultrasound
- Cardiac Surgery Anesthesia
- Echocardiographic Strain Analysis
Background:
- Speckle tracking echocardiography is an ultrasound technique used to measure tissue deformation.
- Assessing right ventricular (RV) function is crucial during cardiac surgery.
- Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) offers an alternative to transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) for intraoperative imaging.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the feasibility of using speckle tracking with TEE for measuring RV longitudinal strain.
- To compare the efficacy of TEE versus TTE in assessing RV deformation parameters during cardiac surgery.
Main Methods:
- Prospective observational cohort study involving 21 patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery.
- Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) and transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) were performed after anesthesia induction.
- Measurements included tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE), RV fractional area of change (FAC), and 2D strain analysis (speckle tracking).
Main Results:
- TEE provided a higher percentage of measurable segments for RV strain analysis (73% vs. 38% for TTE).
- Global RV strain values were comparable between TEE (-20.4%) and TTE (-20.1%).
- TEE enabled measurement of TAPSE (100%) and FAC (90.5%), significantly outperforming TTE (TAPSE 52%, FAC 33.3%).
Conclusions:
- Perioperative RV strain measurement using TEE is feasible in ventilated cardiac surgery patients.
- TEE exhibits a superior success rate for RV strain assessment compared to TTE in this population.
- Differences in image quality likely account for the observed variations in measurement success rates between TEE and TTE.
