Atrial electromechanical delay of patients with COPD in acute and stable periods

Abstract

Background: The increased level of the airway and systemic inflammation, worsened clinical symptoms, and impaired lung functions are regarded as the characteristics of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The COPD may cause right/left ventricle dysfunction, pulmonary hypertension, and cor pulmonale. Objectives: The current study aimed to assess atrial electromechanical delay (AEMD) and echocardiographic changes and their relationship with inflammatory markers in subjects suffering from COPD during acute and stable periods. Methods: This prospective study was carried out on a total of 45 patients (including 22 and 23 female and male participants, respectively) suffering from COPD exacerbation. The stable phase of the participants was considered the control group. The first and second echocardiography was conducted in the first 24 h and following 3 months, respectively. Conventional and Tissue Doppler Imaging was utilized for the evaluation of atrial conduction times and systolic-diastolic functions of the right-left heart. The inflammatory markers, including the c-reactive protein-to-albumin ratio (CAR), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, were also measured in this study. Results: In the stable period, there was a significant reduction in lateral/tricuspid, lateral/mitral, and septal AEMD. The evaluation of right ventricle basal, mid and vertical diameters, tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion, Amax tricuspid, tricuspid regurgitant velocity, systolic pulmonary arterial pressure, tricuspid annular systolic motion, left atrium diameter, left ventricle end-diastolic diameter, interventricular septum thickness, mitral early diastole/atrium systole ratio, systolic mitral motion, systolic septal motion, and heart rate showed significant differences after 3 months. In addition, there was a significant decrease in C-reactive protein, CAR, and NLR. Conclusion: In the stable period, a significant reduction was observed in AEMDs and there was an improvement in the systolic functions of the right-left heart. No correlation was observed between AEMDs and inflammatory markers.