Exercise echocardiography predicts postoperative left ventricular remodeling in aortic regurgitation.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate if preoperative left ventricular (LV) function assessed by exercise echocardiography could predict late postoperative LV function in aortic regurgitation (AR) patients and to evaluate how LV long-axis function is affected late after aortic valve surgery. DESIGN: A total of 21 male chronic AR patients, aged 49 ( 12 ) years, accepted for surgery were examined preoperatively, 6 months-, and 4 years postoperatively, at rest and during exercise. Besides conventional echocardiographic parameters, the atrioventricular plane displacement (AVPD) by M-mode and peak systolic velocity (s') in the basal LV by color tissue Doppler were measured. RESULTS: Preoperatively EF rest and EF exercise, were 55( 7 )% and 54( 9 )%, respectively, and ∆EF 0( 8 )%. LV dimensions and volumes indexed to BSA had decreased at the 6-month follow-up and were stable at late follow-up. s'rest, s'exercise, AVPD rest, and AVPD exercise were unchanged at both the postoperative examinations (all P ≥ 0.05). Preoperative EF exercise and AVPD exercise showed inverse correlation to late postoperative indexed LV enddiastolic volume (r = -0.68, p < 0.004 and r = -0.86, P < 0.001) and indexed LV endsystolic volume (r = -0.68, P = 0.004 and r = -0.81, P < 0.001), while there was no correlation to preoperative EF rest and AVPD rest (all r < 0.2). CONCLUSIONS: Preoperative exercise echocardiography can detect AR patients with suboptimal LV remodeling late postoperatively.

Differences in recovery of left and right ventricular function following aortic valve interventions: a longitudinal echocardiographic study in patients undergoing surgical, transapical or transfemoral aortic valve implantation.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate longitudinal left and right ventricular function (LVF and RVF) after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) as compared to surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) and LVF and RVF after TAVI by the transfemoral (TF) or transapical (TA) approach. BACKGROUND: Knowledge about differences in recovery of LVF and RVF after TAVI and SAVR is scarce. METHODS: Sixty patients (age 81 ± 7 years, logistic EuroSCORE 16 ± 10%), undergoing TAVI (TF: n = 35 and TA: n = 25), were examined by echocardiography including atrioventricular plane displacement (AVPD) and peak systolic velocities (PSV) by tissue Doppler at basal RV free wall, LV lateral wall and septum preprocedurally, 7 weeks and 6 months postprocedurally. Twenty-seven SAVR patients were matched to 27 TAVI patients by age, gender and LVF. RESULTS: Early postintervention, TAVI patients had improved longitudinal LVF. However, when analyzed separately, only TF, but not TA patients, had improved LV lateral and septal AVPD and PSV (all P ≤ 0.01). All TAVI patients, as well as the TF and TA group had unchanged longitudinal LVF between the early and late follow-ups (all P > 0.05). The SAVR group had higher septal LVF than the matched TAVI group preprocedurally, while postoperatively this difference was diminished. Longitudinal RVF was better in the TF group than in the TA group pre- and postprocedurally. Although the SAVR group had superior longitudinal RVF preoperatively, this was inferior to TAVI postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS: Postprocedural longitudinal LVF and RVF in patients undergoing TF-TAVI, TA-TAVI, or SAVR differ considerably. Preservation of longitudinal RVF after TAVI might influence the selection of aortic valve intervention in the future.