EACVI survey on the multi-modality imaging assessment of the right heart

The European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI) Scientific Initiatives Committee performed a global survey to evaluate the use of different cardiac imaging modalities for the evaluation of the right heart.

Delegates from 250 EACVI registered centres were invited to participate in a survey which was also advertised on the EACVI bulletin and on social media. One hundred and thirty-eight respondents from 46 countries across the world responded to the survey. Most respondents worked in tertiary centres (79%) and echocardiography was reported as the commonest imaging modality used to assess the right ventricle (RV). The majority of survey participants (78%) included RV size and function in >90% of their echocardiographic reports. The RV basal diameter obtained from the apical four-chamber view and the tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion were the commonest parameters used for the echocardiographic assessment of RV size and function as reported by 82 and 97% respondents, respectively. Survey participants reported arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy as the commonest condition (88%) where cardiac magentic resonance (CMR) imaging was used for right heart assessment. Only 52% respondents included RV volumetric and ejection fraction assessments routinely in their CMR reports, while 30% of respondents included these parameters only when RV pathology was suspected. Finally, 73% of the respondents reported pulmonary hypertension as the commonest condition where right heart catheterization was performed.

Echocardiography remains the most frequently used imaging modality for the evaluation of the right heart, while the use of other imaging techniques, most notably CMR, is increasing.