Objective.
Myocardial deformation imaging allows analysis of myocardial
Objective.
Myocardial deformation imaging allows analysis of myocardial viability in ischemic left ventricular dysfunction. This study evaluated the predictive value of myocardial deformation imaging for improvement in cardiac function after revascularization therapy in comparison to contrast-enhanced cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (ceMRI).
Methods and Results.
In 53 patients with ischemic left ventricular dysfunction, myocardial viability was assessed using pixel-tracking-derived myocardial deformation imaging and ceMRI to predict recovery of function at 9±2 months follow-up. For each left ventricular segment in a 16-segment model peak systolic radial strain was determined from parasternal 2D echocardiographic views using an automatic frame-by-frame tracking system of natural acoustic echocardiographic markers (EchoPAC, GE Ultrasound), and maximal thickness of myocardial tissue without late enhancement (LE) using ceMRI. Of 463 segments with abnormal baseline function, 227 showed regional recovery. Compared with segments showing functional improvement, those that failed to recover had lower radial strain (15.2±7.5 vs 22.6±6.3 %; p<0.001) and lower thickness without LE (5.2±2.9 vs 8.7±2.2 mm; p<0.001). Using a cut-off of 17.2 % for peak systolic radial strain, functional recovery could be predicted with high accuracy (specificity 85%, sensitivity 70%, area under the curve (AUC) 0.859, 95% CI: 0.825– 0.893). The predictive value of thickness without LE by ceMRI was similar at a cut-off of 8.2 mm (specificity 84%, sensitivity 70%, AUC 0.831, 95% CI: 0.793– 0.870).
Conclusion.
Myocardial deformation imaging based on frame-to-frame tracking of acoustic markers in 2D echocardiographic images is a powerful novel modality to identify reversible myocardial dysfunction.
Myocardial Deformation Imaging Based on Ultrasonic Pixel Tracking to Identify Reversible Myocardial Dysfunction