Serial assessment of right ventricular systolic function in patients with precapillary pulmonary hypertension using simple echocardiographic parameters: A comparison with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging.

BACKGROUND: Although cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) is the gold standard for the (serial) assessment of right ventricular (RV) function, the technique has several drawbacks: CMRI is relatively expensive, has a limited availability, and the analyses are time consuming. Echocardiography (echo) can overcome several of these issues. The aim of this study was to compare simple echo-derived parameters of RV systolic function with CMRI-derived RV ejection fraction (RVEF) in patients with precapillary pulmonary hypertension (PH) and to determine which echo parameters best followed the change in CMRI-derived-RVEF during follow-up. METHODS: CMRI and echo were performed in 96 precapillary PH patients. In 38 patients a second set of a CMRI and echo were available. Retrospectively, echo-derived right ventricular fractional area change (RVFAC), tricuspid annulus plane systolic excursion (TAPSE), fractional transversal (FTWM), and longitudinal wall motion (FLWM) were assessed and compared with CMRI-derived-RVEF. Furthermore, the changes in RVFAC, TAPSE, FTWM, and FLWM during follow-up were compared with the change in CMRI-derived-RVEF. RESULTS: All four echo parameters were significantly correlated to CMRI-derived-RVEF. The strongest relationship was seen between CMRI-derived-RVEF and RVFAC (r2=0.567). However, sensitivity for predicting a deterioration in CMRI-derived RVEF was poor for all four echo-derived parameters (ranging from 33% to 56%). CONCLUSIONS: Although RVFAC, TAPSE, FTWM, and FLWM were significantly correlated to CMRI-derived-RVEF, all four echo parameters showed a low sensitivity for predicting a deterioration in CMRI-derived RVEF during follow-up. Therefore, RVFAC, TAPSE, FTWM, and FLWM are not suitable parameters for the serial assessment of RV systolic function in patients with precapillary PH.

Assessment of right ventricular responses to therapy in pulmonary hypertension.

Irrespective of its cause, pulmonary hypertension (PH) leads to an increase in pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR). Failing adaption of the right ventricle (RV) to the increased afterload is the main cause of death in PH patients and therefore monitoring RV function during treatment is essential. However, consensus on the optimal method for serial assessment of RV function is lacking and therefore the major clinical trials on PH-specific therapies have not provided clear answers with respect to the response of the RV to treatment. This short review will give an overview of the most important load-dependent and load-independent parameters for assessing RV response to therapy in PH patients.