Quantitative evaluation of the left ventricular systolic dyssynchrony and its significance in patients with heart failure after myocardial infarction by real-time three-dimensional echocardiography

Abstract

Objective To quantitatively assess the left ventricular systolic dyssynchrony in patients with varied degrees of chronic congestive heart failure after old myocardial infarction(OMI) by real-time three-dimensional echocardiography(RT-3DE) and investigate the clinical value of the systolic dyssynchrony index(SDI). Methods Forty patients with congestive heart failure after OMI (infarction group) were divided into the severe dysfunction group (LVEF ≤35 %) and the mild dysfunction group (35 % ＜ LVEF＜50%) ,and 30 normal subjects served as the control. RT-3DE was performed on all subjects to obtain the 17-segmental time-volumetric curves and global systolic function. SDI changes in above groups and the correlation between SDI and LVEF were analyzed. Results The SDI of the infarction group was significantly higher than that of the normal control group ( P ＜0. 01 ). The SDI of the severe dysfunction group was significantly higher than that of the mild group (P＜0.01). SDI and LVEF were negatively correlated ( r = -0.84, P ＜0. 01 ). The dyssynchrony rate in the infarction group was 85 %,in the severe dysfunction group was 100%, in the mild group was 75%. Conclusions Left ventricular systolic dyssynchrony is prevalent in patients with OMI, and it is negatively correlated with the LVEF. SDI is a sensitive indicator in assessing left ventricular systolic dyssynchrony. RT-3DE has a unique advantage in the evaluation of the left ventricular systolic dyssynchrony,especially in the patients with myocardial infarction. Key words: Echocardiography, real-time three-dimensional; Myocardial infarction; Heart failure,congestive ; Ventricular function, left