[Quantification of left and right ventricular systolic function in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy using...

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Medical Imaging
• Echocardiography

Background:

• Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a significant cardiovascular condition affecting ventricular function.
• Accurate assessment of both left and right ventricular systolic function is crucial for DCM management.
• Traditional echocardiography methods may have limitations in fully evaluating complex ventricular dynamics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of real-time three-dimensional echocardiography (RT-3DE) in assessing left and right ventricular systolic function in patients with DCM.
• To compare RT-3DE derived parameters between DCM patients and healthy controls.
• To validate RT-3DE measurements against cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) in a subset of patients.

Main Methods:

• Fifty patients diagnosed with DCM and 50 healthy subjects were enrolled in the study.
• RT-3DE was utilized to measure key systolic function parameters, including end-diastolic volume (EDV), end-systolic volume (ESV), stroke volume (SV), and ejection fraction (EF).
• The systolic dyssynchrony index (SDI) was assessed for left ventricular function, and RT-3DE results were compared with CMRI in 30 DCM patients.

Main Results:

• DCM patients exhibited significantly higher EDV, ESV, and SDI compared to controls (P<0.001).
• Ejection fraction (EF) was significantly lower in DCM patients (P<0.001), while stroke volume (SV) showed no significant difference.
• A strong negative correlation was observed between left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and SDI (r=-0.697, P<0.001), and a moderate correlation between LVEF and right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF) (r=0.496, P<0.01). RT-3DE and CMRI measurements showed good agreement.

Conclusions:

• RT-3DE is a reliable tool for evaluating left and right ventricular systolic function in patients with DCM.
• The technique provides comprehensive data on ventricular volumes, ejection fraction, and systolic dyssynchrony.
• RT-3DE measurements demonstrated good correlation with CMRI, supporting its clinical utility in DCM assessment.