scholarly journals Prognostic Role of Subclinical Congestion in Heart Failure Outpatients: Focus on Right Ventricular Dysfunction

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (22) ◽  
pp. 5423
Author(s):  
Andrea Lorenzo Vecchi ◽  
Silvia Muccioli ◽  
Jacopo Marazzato ◽  
Antonella Mancinelli ◽  
Attilio Iacovoni ◽  
...  

Background: subclinical pulmonary and peripheral congestion is an emerging concept in heart failure, correlated with a worse prognosis. Very few studies have evaluated its prognostic impact in an outpatient setting and its relationship with right-ventricular dysfunction. The study aims to investigate subclinical congestion in chronic heart failure outpatients, exploring the close relationship between the right heart-pulmonary unit and peripheral congestion. Materials and methods: in this observational study, 104 chronic HF outpatients were enrolled. The degree of congestion and signs of elevated filling pressures of the right ventricle were evaluated by physical examination and a transthoracic ultrasound to define multiparametric right ventricular dysfunction, estimate the right atrial pressure and the pulmonary artery systolic pressure. Outcome data were obtained by scheduled visits and phone calls. Results: ultrasound signs of congestion were found in 26% of patients and, among this cohort, half of them presented as subclinical, affecting their prognosis, revealing a linear correlation between right ventricular/arterial coupling, the right-chambers size and ultrasound congestion. Right ventricular dysfunction, TAPSE/PAPS ratio, clinical and ultrasound signs of congestion have been confirmed to be useful predictors of outcome. Conclusions: subclinical congestion is widespread in the heart failure outpatient population, significantly affecting prognosis, especially when right ventricular dysfunction also occurs, suggesting a strict correlation between the heart-pulmonary unit and volume overload.

Author(s):  
Marco Guazzi ◽  
Robert Naeije

The health burden of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction is increasingly recognized. Despite improvements in diagnostic algorithms and established knowledge on the clinical trajectory, effective treatment options for heart failure with preserved ejection fraction remain limited, mainly because of the high mechanistic heterogeneity. Diagnostic scores, big data, and phenomapping categorization are proposed as key steps needed for progress. In the meantime, advancements in imaging techniques combined to high-fidelity pressure signaling analysis have uncovered right ventricular dysfunction as a mediator of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction progression and as major independent determinant of poor outcome. This review summarizes the current understanding of the pathophysiology of right ventricular dysfunction in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction covering the different right heart phenotypes and offering perspectives on new treatments targeting the right ventricle in its function and geometry.


Diagnostics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 548
Author(s):  
Aura Vijiiac ◽  
Sebastian Onciul ◽  
Claudia Guzu ◽  
Alina Scarlatescu ◽  
Ioana Petre ◽  
...  

During the last decade, studies have raised awareness of the crucial role that the right ventricle plays in various clinical settings, including diseases primarily linked to the left ventricle. The assessment of right ventricular performance with conventional echocardiography is challenging. Novel echocardiographic techniques improve the functional assessment of the right ventricle and they show good correlation with the gold standard represented by cardiac magnetic resonance. This review summarizes the traditional and innovative echocardiographic techniques used in the functional assessment of the right ventricle, focusing on the role of right ventricular dysfunction in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction and providing a perspective on recent evidence from literature.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. 1517 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geenen ◽  
Baggen ◽  
Kauling ◽  
Koudstaal ◽  
Boomars ◽  
...  

Soluble ST2 (sST2) is upregulated in response to myocardial stress and may serve as biomarker in adults with pulmonary hypertension (PH). This prospective cohort study investigated sST2 levels and its association with echocardiographic and hemodynamic measures, and adverse clinical outcomes in adults with PH of different etiologies. sST2 was measured during the diagnostic right heart catheterization for PH, in adult patients enrolled between May 2012 and October 2016. PH due to left heart failure was excluded. The association between sST2 and a primary endpoint composed of death or lung transplantation and a secondary composite endpoint including death, lung transplantation or heart failure, was investigated using Cox regression with adjustment for NT-proBNP. In total 104 patients were included (median age was 59 years, 66% woman, 51% pulmonary arterial hypertension). Median sST2 was 28 [IQR 20–46] ng/mL. Higher sST2 was associated with worse right ventricular dysfunction and higher mean pulmonary and right atrial pressures. Median follow-up was 3.3 [IQR 2.3–4.6] years. The primary and secondary endpoint occurred in 33 (31.7%) and 43 (41.3%) patients, respectively. sST2 was significantly associated with both endpoints (HR per 2-fold higher value 1.53, 95%CI 1.12–2.07, p = 0.007 and 1.45, 95%CI 1.10–1.90, p = 0.008, respectively). However, after adjustment for NT-proBNP, both associations did not reach statistical significance. In conclusions, higher sST2 levels are associated with more severe PH and right ventricular dysfunction and yields prognostic value in adults with PH, although not independently of NT-proBNP.


2008 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 134-134
Author(s):  
J OREATEJEDA ◽  
L CASTILLOMARTINEZ ◽  
R SILVATINOCO ◽  
V REBOLLARGONZALEZ ◽  
E COLINRAMIREZ ◽  
...  

Circulation ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 132 (suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Drakopoulou ◽  
Konstantinos Stathogiannis ◽  
Konstantinos Toutouzas ◽  
George Latsios ◽  
Andreas Synetos ◽  
...  

Objective: Severe aortic stenosis leads to increased pulmonary arterial systolic pressure. A controversy still remains regarding the impact of persistent pulmonary hypertension (PHT) on prognosis of patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). We sought to investigate the impact of persistent PHT on 2-year all-cause mortality of patients with severe aortic stenosis following TAVI. Methods: Patients with severe and symptomatic aortic stenosis (effective orifice area [EOA]≤1 cm 2 ) who were scheduled for TAVI with a self-expanding valve at our institution were prospectively enrolled. Prospectively collected echocardiographic data before and after TAVI were retrospectively analyzed in all patients. Pulmonary artery systolic pressure was estimated as the sum of the right ventricular to the right atrial gradient during systole and the right atrial pressure. PHT following TAVI was classified as absent if <35 mmHg and persistent if ≥35 mmHg. Primary clinical end-point was 2-year all-cause mortality defined according to the criteria proposed by the Valve Academic Research Consortium-2. Results: Hundred and forty patients (mean age: 82±9 years) were included in the study. The primary clinical end point occurred in 17 patients (12%) during a median follow-up period of 2 years. Mean pulmonary artery systolic pressure was reduced in all patients following TAVI (45±9 versus 41±6 mmHg, p<0.01). Mortality rate was higher in patients with persistent PHT compared to patients with normal pulmonary artery systolic pressure following TAVI (26% versus 14 %, p<0.01). Patients that reached the primary clinical end point had a higher post procedural mean systolic pulmonary pressure (43±9 versus 39±6 mmHg, p=0.02). In multivariate regression analysis, persistence of PHT (OR: 2.51, 95% CI: 1.109-7.224, p=0.01) was an independent predictor of long-term mortality. Conclusions: The persistence of pulmonary hypertension after TAVI is associated with long term mortality. Identifying the population that will clearly benefit from TAVI is still need to be validated by larger trials.


Circulation ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (Suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Vella ◽  
Gianmarco Carenini ◽  
Francesco Bandera ◽  
Marco Guazzi

Introduction: The heart-kidney interaction in heart failure (HF) is a matter of special interest, especially due to its strong prognostic significance. The search for a reliable, non-invasive parameter with high pathophysiological and prognostic impact to evaluate HF-related renal congestion remains attractive. Doppler evaluation of intra-renal venous flow (IRVF) has been recently employed in HF patients, with a spectrum of findings ranging from a normal continuous flow to a monophasic discontinuous one, indicative of low and high degrees of renal congestion, respectively. Hypothesis: We postulated a role for right atrial dynamics in the renal congestion pathophysiology. The impairment in atrial deformation and pump function may play a primary role increasing the pulsatile backward load in the venous system, especially in acute heart failure (AHF) patients. Methods: 119 consecutive AHF patients were prospectively investigated within 48 hours from admission. Doppler-derived descriptors of renal hemodynamics included the renal arterial resistive index, IRVF pattern, venous impedance index and renal venous stasis index (RVSI). Results: Right atrial peak longitudinal strain (RAPLS) showed a strong correlation with IRVF pattern (Fig A) and various indices of RV function (TAPSE, S’, FAC) and RV coupling as represented by the TAPSE/PASP ratio (Fig B). At multivariate regression analysis, TAPSE/PASP ratio emerged as the main determinant of RVSI. On the other hand, considering only patients with a clearly impaired RV coupling (TAPSE/PASP <0.30), RAPLS emerged as the best determinant of RVSI (Fig C-D). Conclusions: Our data confirms the main role of the right heart in determining renal stasis in HF patients. When RV to pulmonary circulation uncoupling is severe, the right atrium becomes the key balancing factor in the venous renal flow response. Studies on the mechanistic contribution of the RA dysfunction and the recovery potential of interventions are warranted.


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