Intervendor Differences in the Accuracy of Detecting Regional Functional Abnormalities: A Report From the EACVI-ASE...

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Medical Imaging
• Echocardiography

Background:

• Speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) is a promising tool for quantitative assessment of regional myocardial function.
• Limited research exists on the accuracy differences among STE software for identifying regional abnormalities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the accuracy of vendor-specific and independent strain analysis tools in detecting regional myocardial function abnormalities.
• To evaluate the performance of different STE software in a clinical setting.

Main Methods:

• Sixty-three subjects (5 healthy, 58 patients with myocardial infarction) were examined using 7 ultrasound machines.
• Segmental strain parameters (peak systolic, end-systolic, post-systolic) were measured using 6 vendor-specific and 2 independent software tools.
• Strain parameters were compared between scarred and scar-free segments; receiver-operating characteristic curves assessed discrimination ability.

Main Results:

• All vendors detected significantly lower strain values in scarred segments compared to normal segments (p < 0.05).
• Accuracy in identifying transmural scar ranged from acceptable to excellent (AUC 0.70-0.83).
• Significant differences in accuracy were found among vendors (p < 0.05), with lower accuracy for basal segments compared to apical segments.

Conclusions:

• The accuracy of identifying regional myocardial abnormalities significantly differs among STE software vendors.
• Clinical application of STE requires careful consideration of software-specific performance variations.