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Updated: May 18, 2026
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Methods for ECG Evaluation of Indicators of Cardiac Risk, and Susceptibility to Aconitine-induced Arrhythmias in Rats Following Status Epilepticus
Published on: April 5, 2011
Cardiac impact of epilepsy: a global longitudinal strain-based evaluation
Hikmet Saçmacı1, Levent Özdemi̇r2, Güneş Seda Albayrak3
1Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Yozgat Bozok University, Yozgat, Turkey. hsacmaci@hotmail.com.
Summary
Epilepsy patients show subclinical heart muscle damage detectable by strain imaging, indicating early cardiac vulnerability. This method aids in assessing cardiovascular risk in epilepsy.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Neurology
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- Epilepsy can impact cardiac function due to autonomic nervous system changes.
- Strain echocardiography offers sensitive detection of myocardial deformation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify subclinical cardiac involvement in epilepsy patients using strain echocardiography.
- To evaluate the role of strain imaging in cardiac risk assessment for epilepsy patients.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional observational study comparing 49 epilepsy patients with 57 healthy controls.
- Utilized standard transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), tissue Doppler indices, left and right ventricular global longitudinal strain (LVGLS, RVGLS), left atrial strain (LAS), and ECG parameters.
Main Results:
- Epilepsy patients exhibited significantly reduced LVGLS, RVGLS, and LAS compared to controls.
- Diastolic function (isovolumetric relaxation/contraction time, medial e') and ECG parameters (conduction/repolarization) were affected in epilepsy patients.
- Left ventricular ejection fraction was lower in epilepsy patients, suggesting early systolic vulnerability despite being within normal ranges.
Conclusions:
- Epilepsy is associated with subclinical myocardial deformation detectable by strain imaging, even with preserved conventional echocardiographic findings.
- Speckle-tracking echocardiography can aid in early identification of myocardial involvement in epilepsy.
- Integrating strain imaging may improve cardiovascular risk stratification in the epilepsy population.
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