Can Speckle Tracking Of Right Ventricle Add Value For Evaluation Of Asthma Severity In Children?

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Pediatric Pulmonology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease affecting children worldwide.
• Cardiac function can be impacted by asthma, particularly the right ventricle.
• Early detection of cardiac dysfunction is crucial for managing pediatric asthma.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate myocardial deformation using speckle tracking echocardiography.
• To evaluate cardiac function in asthmatic children compared to healthy controls.
• To assess the relationship between asthma severity and right ventricular dysfunction.

Main Methods:

• A case-control study involving 120 children (60 asthmatic, 60 controls).
• Utilized conventional echocardiography, tissue Doppler imaging, and speckle tracking echocardiography.
• Measured global left and right ventricular strains and assessed right ventricular diastolic and systolic function.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in conventional echocardiography between groups.
• Asthmatic children showed impaired right ventricular diastolic and systolic function.
• Speckle tracking identified significant differences in right ventricular systolic stress between cases and controls.

Conclusions:

• Speckle tracking echocardiography is effective in detecting early, subtle right ventricular systolic dysfunction in children with asthma.
• Right ventricular dysfunction is more pronounced in children with moderate to severe asthma.
• This imaging modality aids in understanding the cardiac impact of pediatric asthma.