Echocardiographic assessment of right ventricular function in peritoneal dialysis patients

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality in patients undergoing dialysis. Most of the available studies focus on left ventricular (LV) function in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients; data about the effect of PD on right ventricular (RV) function are scarce. The aim of this study was to evaluate echocardiographic parameters of the RV in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) undergoing PD.

A total of 73 individuals were grouped as follows: PD patients (n=36) and healthy controls (n=37). Echocardiography of the RV was performed in all of the patients using tissue Doppler imaging (TDI).

The LV mass index (LVMI), left atrial (LA) diameter, posterior wall, and interventricular septum thicknesses were significantly greater in the PD group. The LV peak late diastolic atrial contraction (A) velocity was higher, and the peak early diastolic (E) velocity and the early diastolic velocity of the lateral mitral annulus (Em) were lower in the PD group compared with the control group. The right atrial (RA) diameter, RA area, RV fractional area change, RV myocardial performance index, and pulmonary vascular resistance values were similar in both groups, whereas the tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) value was lower in the PD patients. The RV E; early diastolic (Ea), late diastolic (Aa), and systolic (Sa) velocities; deceleration time; and tricuspid regurgitation velocity were also similar in the 2 groups. Only the RV A velocity and the Ea/Aa ratio were significantly higher in the PD group, and the E/A ratio was lower in the PD group than in the control group.

The results of conventional and TDI echocardiography indicated that RV systolic and diastolic functions were preserved in PD patients.