| 1. |
- Cameli, Matteo, et al.
(author)
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Pre-operative left atrial strain predicts post-operative atrial fibrillation in patients undergoing aortic valve replacement for aortic stenosis
- 2014
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In: The International Journal of Cardiovascular Imaging. - Dordrecht : Springer Netherlands. - 1569-5794 .- 1875-8312 .- 1573-0743. ; 30:2, s. 279-286
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Post-operative atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common and serious complication in patients undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR). Speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) has recently enabled the quantification of longitudinal myocardial left atrial (LA) deformation dynamics. Our aim was to investigate LA preoperative mechanical function in patients undergoing AVR for aortic stenosis using STE and determine predictors of post-operative AF. 76 patients with aortic stenosis in sinus rhythm, undergoing AVR, were prospectively enrolled. Conventional echocardiographic parameters, and peak atrial longitudinal strain (PALS) were measured in all subjects the day before surgery. PALS values were obtained by averaging all segments in the 4- and 2-chamber views (global PALS). All patients received biological valve prostheses and a standard postoperative care. Postoperative AF occurred in 15 patients (19.7 %). On univariate analysis among all clinical and echocardiographic variables, global PALS showed the highest diagnostic accuracy (HR 6.55 p < 0.0001; AUC of 0.89) with a cut-off value < 16.9 %, having sensitivity and specificity of 86 and 91 %, respectively, in predicting postoperative AF. LA volume indexed and E/e' ratio had lower diagnostic accuracy (AUC 0.76 and 0.51, respectively). On multivariate analysis global PALS remains a significant predictor of postoperative AF (p < 0.0001). STE analysis of LA myocardial deformation is considered a promising tool for the evaluation of LA subclinical dysfunction in patients undergoing AVR, giving a potentially better risk stratification for the occurrence of postoperative AF.
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| 2. |
- Lisi, Matteo, 1982-, et al.
(author)
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Reduced myocardial strain is the best predictor of left atrial fibrosis and symptoms in patients undergoing heart transplantation
- 2016
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Other publication (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Background: Left ventricular systolic dysfunction and raised diastolic pressures contribute to progressive left atrial (LA). We aimed to assess LA peak atrial longitudinal strain (PALS), in predicting the extent of LA fibrosis in patients with end-stage heart failure (HF) undergoing heart transplantation (HTx).Methods: We studied 48 patients with severe systolic HF (EF≤25% and NYHA class III-IV) before HTx. PALS, LA volume and LA stiffness were all measured. From the LA myocardial histological analysis, the ratio of fibrotic to total sample area determined the extent of fibrosis (%). Right heart catheterization and cardiopulmonary exercise testing were also assessed. Results: LA fibrosis correlated strongly with PALS (R=-0.76; p<0.0001) and NYHA class (R=0.73; p<0.0001) and to a lesser extent with VO2 max (R=-0.65; p=0.001), LA stiffness (R=0.58; p=0.001), PAoP (R=0.51; p=0.03), E/e′ (R=0.55; p=0.01) and E/A (R=0.46; p=0.01). Global PALS correlated modestly with VO2 max (R=0.53; p=0.001) and LA volume (R=-0.48; p=0.01) and weakly with E/e′ (R=-0.36; p=0.03). Multivariate regression analysis identified global PALS as the main determinant of LA myocardial fibrosis (β =-0.62, p<0.001). A cut off value of 7.6% gave an AUC of 0.79 on the ROC curve with a sensitivity of 87% and specificity of 84% in predicting >50% myocardial fibrosis.Conclusions:LA PALS is the most accurate LA function parameter that correlates with the extent of myocardial fibrosis in patients with advanced systolic HF requiring HTx.PALS of 7.6% could be used as a cut off value for identifying patients with severe LA fibrosis.
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| 3. |
- Lisi, Matteo, et al.
(author)
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RV Longitudinal Deformation Correlates With Myocardial Fibrosis in Patients With End-Stage Heart Failure
- 2015
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In: JACC Cardiovascular Imaging. - : Elsevier. - 1936-878X .- 1876-7591. ; 8:5, s. 514-522
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objectives: This study was performed to determine the accuracy of right ventricular (RV) longitudinal strain (LS) in predicting myocardial fibrosis in patients with severe heart failure (HF) undergoing heart transplantation. Background: RVLS plays a key role in the evaluation of its systolic performance and clinical outcome in patients with refractory HF. Methods: We studied 27 patients with severe systolic HF (ejection fraction ≤25% and New York Heart Association functional class III to IV, despite full medical therapy and cardiac resynchronization therapy) using echocardiography before heart transplantation. RV free wall LS, right atrial LS, sphericity index (SI), and tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) were all measured. Upon removal of the heart, from the myocardial histologic analysis, the ratio of the fibrotic to the total sample area determined the extent of fibrosis (%). Results: RV myocardial fibrosis correlated with RV free wall LS (r = 0.80; p < 0.0001), SI (r = 0.42; p = 0.01) and VO2 max (r = –0.41; p = 0.03), with a poor correlation with TAPSE (r = –0.34; p = 0.05) and right atrial LS (r = –0.37; p = 0.03). Stepwise multivariate analysis showed that RV free wall LS (β = 0.701, p < 0.0001) was independently associated with RV fibrosis (overall model R2 = 0.64, p < 0.0001). RV free wall LS was the main determinant of myocardial fibrosis. In the subgroup of patients with severe RV fibrosis, RV free wall LS had the highest diagnostic accuracy for detecting severe myocardial fibrosis (area under the curve = 0.87; 95% confidence interval: 0.80 to 0.94). Conclusions: In late-stage HF patients, the right ventricle is enlarged, with reduced systolic function due to significant myocardial fibrosis. RV free wall myocardial deformation is the most accurate functional measure that correlates with the extent of RV myocardial fibrosis and functional capacity.
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