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Updated: Jan 22, 2026
Evaluation of Left Ventricular Structure and Function using 3D Echocardiography
Published on: October 28, 2020
Qualitative Assessment of Color M-Mode Signals in the Evaluation of Left Ventricular Diastolic Function: A Proof of
Dagmar F Hernandez-Suarez1, Yeunjung Kim2, Francisco Menéndez López3
1Cardiovascular Medicine Division, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Objectives:
Although the most recent American Society of Echocardiography guidelines are a major step forward in echocardiographic evaluation of diastolic function, the ability to differentiate between normal and abnormal function remains challenging. The authors aimed to determine whether qualitative assessments of color M-mode flow displays could be a useful parameter in the evaluation of left ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction.
Design:
Retrospective observational study.
Setting:
Tertiary care level hospital.
Participants:
The study comprised echocardiographic data from 105 consecutive patients.
Intervention:
None.
Measurements And Main Results:
Patients were allocated into the following 3 groups according to the LV diastolic function based on current American Society of Echocardiography recommendation guidelines for LV diastolic dysfunction classification: group I-normal function (n = 40); group II-early relaxation abnormalities (grade I) (n = 50), and group III-elevated LV pressures (grade II) (n = 15). Patients with normal diastolic function were younger (45 ± 14 y) than those with diastolic dysfunction (group II: 64 ± 10 y and group III: 56 ± 15 y) (p < 0.05). Volumetric echocardiographic parameters and mitral inflow and mitral annulus tissue Doppler imaging measures were significantly different among the 3 studied groups (p < 0.05). Interestingly, qualitative assessment of color M-mode flows displayed distinctive signals based on the left ventricle filling properties. Intraobserver and interobserver variability to determine the reliability of these signals were robust (weighted kappa 0.84 ± 0.11 and 0.65 ± 0.13, respectively).
Conclusion:
Qualitative assessment of color M-mode flow displays offers simple and reliable information of potential usefulness in the evaluation of LV diastolic function.
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