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Murine Echocardiography of Left Atrium, Aorta, and Pulmonary Artery
Published on: February 20, 2017
Evaluating the consistency in different methods for measuring left atrium diameters
Jun-Yan Yue1,2,3, Kai Ji1, Hai-Peng Liu1
1Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Weihui Henan Province, 453200, Xinxiang, China.
Insights
Physician measurements of the left atrium (LA) diameter are reliable. However, different measurement techniques yield varying results, with volume rendering (VR) of the LA long diameter being most clinically applicable for atrial fibrillation ablation.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Radiology
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- Accurate morphological assessment of the pulmonary vein (PV) and left atrium (LA) is crucial for effective atrial fibrillation ablation.
- Variations in LA diameter measurements can impact treatment planning and outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the consistency of different left atrium (LA) diameter measurement techniques.
- To compare the clinical applicability of various measurement methods for LA dimensions.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 87 patients' PV computed tomography angiography data.
- Independent measurements of LA anteroposterior, long, and transverse diameters by two physicians using six distinct methods.
- Assessment of intra-rater reliability and inter-rater consistency using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).
Main Results:
- Strong to very strong inter-rater consistency was observed for LA diameter measurements.
- Statistically significant differences were found in LA diameter measurements across different techniques (P < 0.001).
- Measurement methods varied significantly in the time required for image post-processing (P < 0.001).
Conclusions:
- Left atrium (LA) diameter measurements by physicians demonstrate reliability.
- Significant variations exist in LA dimensions obtained via different measurement techniques.
- Measuring LA long diameter using volume rendering (VR) alone is identified as the most clinically applicable method.
Background:
The morphological information of the pulmonary vein (PV) and left atrium (LA) is of immense clinical importance for effective atrial fibrillation ablation. The aim of this study is to examine the consistency in different LA diameter measurement techniques.
Methods:
Retrospective imaging data from 87 patients diagnosed with PV computed tomography angiography were included. The patients consisted of 50 males and 37 females, with an average age of (60.74 ± 8.70) years. Two physicians independently measured the anteroposterior diameter, long diameter, and transverse diameter of the LA using six different methods. Additionally, we recorded the post-processing time of the images. Physician 1 conducted measurements twice with a one-month interval between the measurements to assess intra-rater reliability. Using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), the consistency of each LA diameter measurement by the two physicians was evaluated. We compared the differences in the LA diameter and the time consumed for measurements using different methods. This was done by employing the rank sum test of a randomized block design (Friedman M test) and the q test for pairwise comparisons among multiple relevant samples.
Results:
(1) The consistency of the measured LA diameter by the two physicians was strong or very strong. (2) There were statistical differences in the anteroposterior diameter, long diameter, and transverse diameter of LA assessed using different methods (χ2 = 222.28, 32.74, 293.83, P < 0.001). (3) Different methods for measuring the diameters of LA required different amounts of time (χ2 = 333.10, P < 0.001).
Conclusion:
The results of left atrium (LA) diameter measurements conducted by different physicians were found to be reliable. However, the LA diameters obtained through various techniques exhibited variations. It was observed that measuring LA long diameters using only the VR (volume rendering) picture was the most clinically applicable method.
