Assessing global and regional left ventricular myocardial function in elderly patients using the bidimensional strain...

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Geriatrics
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Aging is associated with biological and anatomical changes affecting myocardial function.
• Echocardiography and speckle tracking are key technologies for assessing cardiac deformation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare left ventricular (LV) 2D strain parameters between elderly individuals and younger controls without heart disease.
• To investigate the impact of aging on myocardial deformation using echocardiography.

Main Methods:

• Echocardiographic assessment of 2D strain in 45 elderly patients and 45 healthy young subjects.
• Exclusion of participants with LV myocardial abnormality, valve disease, or atrial fibrillation.
• Analysis of longitudinal, transversal, and circumferential strain across 16 and 6 myocardial segments.

Main Results:

• Global longitudinal strain was significantly lower in elderly patients (-20.9±1.9%) compared to young controls (-22.2±2.2%).
• No significant differences were observed in global transversal and circumferential strain between the groups.
• Feasibility of 2D strain analysis varied, with longitudinal strain showing the highest feasibility (82%).

Conclusions:

• Aging leads to a measurable decrease in global longitudinal strain.
• This age-related decline in myocardial deformation must be considered when evaluating pathological cardiac dysfunction in the elderly.