No abstract available.
Atrial Fibrillation ; LEOPARD Syndrome* ; Panthera*

No abstract available.
Coronary Occlusion ; Heart Neoplasms ; Myocardial Infarction* ; Sarcoma*

BACKGROUND: Overestimation of the severity of mitral regurgitation (MR) by the proximal isovelocity surface area (PISA) method has been reported. We sought to test whether angle correction (AC) of the constrained flow field is helpful to eliminate overestimation in patients with eccentric MR. METHODS: In a total of 33 patients with MR due to prolapse or flail mitral valve, both echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance image (CMR) were performed to calculate regurgitant volume (RV). In addition to RV by conventional PISA (RV(PISA)), convergence angle (α) was measured from 2-dimensional Doppler color flow maps and RV was corrected by multiplying by α/180 (RV(AC)). RV measured by CMR (RV(CMR)) was used as a gold standard, which was calculated by the difference between total stroke volume measured by planimetry of the short axis slices and aortic stroke volume by phase-contrast image. RESULTS: The correlation between RV(CMR) and RV by echocardiography was modest [RV(CMR) vs. RV(PISA) (r = 0.712, p < 0.001) and RV(CMR) vs. RV(AC) (r = 0.766, p < 0.001)]. However, RV(PISA) showed significant overestimation (RV(PISA) - RV(CMR) = 50.6 ± 40.6 mL vs. RV(AC) - RV(CMR) = 7.7 ± 23.4 mL, p < 0.001). The overall accuracy of RV(PISA) for diagnosis of severe MR, defined as RV ≥ 60 mL, was 57.6% (19/33), whereas it increased to 84.8% (28/33) by using RV(AC) (p = 0.028). CONCLUSION: Conventional PISA method tends to provide falsely large RV in patients with eccentric MR and a simple geometric AC of the proximal constraint flow largely eliminates overestimation.
Diagnosis ; Echocardiography ; Humans ; Methods* ; Mitral Valve ; Mitral Valve Insufficiency* ; Prolapse ; Stroke Volume

BACKGROUND: Decreased left atrial (LA) reservoir function is reported to be associated with elevated left ventricular (LV) end diastolic pressure and LV diastolic dysfunction. Echocardiographic parameters that reflect LA reservoir function include LA total emptying fraction [(maximum LA volume - minimum LA volume) / maximum LA volume], peak LA longitudinal strain (PLALS) at systole, and LA stiffness index (E/E´/PLALS). We aimed to investigate the long-term outcomes of LV diastolic function in children with a history of Kawasaki disease (KD) (KDHx group) by assessing LA reservoir function. METHODS: Retrospectively, echocardiograms performed at a mean follow-up period of 5 years after the acute phase of KD in 24 children in the KDHx group were compared to those from 20 normal control subjects. LA total emptying fraction, PLALS, LA stiffness index, LV peak longitudinal systolic strain (ε), and strain rate (SR) were evaluated with conventional echocardiographic parameters. RESULTS: The mean age at long term follow-up echocardiography in children in the KDHx group was 6.8 years. Five children (20.8%) had coronary artery lesions (CALs) in the acute stage of KD. No children showed CALs at a mean follow-up period of 5 years after the acute phase of KD. There were no significant differences in the conventional echocardiographic parameters and in LA total emptying fraction, PLALS, LA stiffness index, LV peak longitudinal systolic ε, and SR, between the children in the KDHx and control group. CONCLUSION: LV diastolic function assessed by LA reservoir function parameters at long-term follow-up in children in the KDHx group appears to be favorable.
Atrial Function ; Blood Pressure ; Child* ; Coronary Vessels ; Echocardiography ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Mucocutaneous Lymph Node Syndrome* ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Systole

Cardiovascular (CV) toxicity associated with anti-cancer treatment is commonly encountered and raises critical problems that often result in serious morbidity or mortality. Most cardiac toxicities are related to the cumulative dose of chemotherapy; however, the type of chemotherapy, concomitant agents, and/or conventional CV risk factors have been frequently implicated in CV toxicity. Approximately half of the patients exhibiting CV toxicity receive an anthracycline-based regimen. Therefore, serologic biomarkers or cardiac imagings are important during anti-cancer treatment for early detection and the decision of appropriate management of cardiotoxicity. However, given the difficulty in determining a causal relationship, a multidisciplinary collaborative approach between cardiologists and oncologists is required. In this review, we summarize the CV toxicity and focus on the role of cardiac imaging in management strategies for cardiotoxicity associated with anti-cancer treatment.
Biomarkers ; Cardiotoxicity ; Diagnosis* ; Drug Therapy ; Echocardiography* ; Humans ; Mortality ; Risk Factors

No abstract available.
Coronary Vessels* ; Pulmonary Artery*

No abstract available.
Endocarditis* ; Heart Septal Defects, Ventricular* ; Humans ; Streptococcus*

BACKGROUND: To detect progression of right ventricular (RV) systolic dysfunction (RVSD) in asymptomatic preterm children from infancy to 24-month corrected age, using velocity vector imaging (VVI). METHODS: Retrospective study comparing sequential RV longitudinal peak systolic strain (LPSS) from 24 children born at < 33 weeks of gestational age and 10 term infants recruited as controls, obtained at a mean of 4-month (first exam) and 24-month corrected age (second exam). RESULTS: In 7/24 (29.2%) of preterm children, RV LPSS of < 16%, defined as RVSD, was detected at the second exam; 5/7 of these children had RV LPSS > 16% at the first exam, and only 2/7 of these children had a history of moderate or severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia. CONCLUSION: In asymptomatic preterm children, routine echocardiographic screening using VVI could detect RVSD which could progress from 4–24 month corrected age.
Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia ; Child* ; Echocardiography ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Mass Screening ; Retrospective Studies

BACKGROUND: Because conventional echocardiographic parameters have several limitations, strain echocardiography has often been introduced in clinical practice. However, there are also obstacles in using it in clinical practice. Therefore, we wanted to find the current status of awareness on using strain echocardiography in Korea. METHODS: We conducted a nationwide survey to evaluate current use and awareness of strain echocardiography from the members of the Korean Society of Echocardiography. RESULTS: We gathered total 321 questionnaires from 25 cardiology centers in Korea. All participants were able to perform or interpret echocardiographic examinations. All participating institutions performed strain echocardiography. Most of our study participants (97%) were aware of speckle tracking echocardiography and 185 (58%) performed it for clinical and research purposes. Two-dimensional strain echocardiography was the most commonly used modality and left ventricle (LV) was the most commonly used cardiac chamber (99%) for clinical purposes. Most of the participants (89%) did not think LV strain can replace LV ejection fraction (LVEF) in their clinical practice. The common reasons for not performing routine use of strain echocardiography was diversity of strain measurements and lack of normal reference value. Many participants had a favorable view of the future of strain echocardiography. CONCLUSION: Most of our study participants were aware of strain echocardiography, and all institutions performed strain echocardiography for clinical and research purposes. However, they did not think the LV strain values could replace LVEF. The diversity of strain measurements and lack of normal reference values were common reasons for not using strain echocardiography in clinical practice.
Cardiology ; Echocardiography* ; Heart Ventricles ; Korea* ; Reference Values

BACKGROUND: Left atrial (LA) remodeling develops as a result of longstanding pressure overload. However, determinants and clinical outcome of excessive remodeling, so called giant left atrium (GLA), are not clear. METHODS: Clinical characteristics of patients with GLA (antero-posterior diameter higher than 65 mm), including echo-Doppler parameters, and follow-up clinical outcomes from a tertiary referral hospital were investigated. RESULTS: Among 68519 consecutive primary patients who underwent echocardiography over a period of 10 years, data from 163 GLA cases (0.24%) were analyzed. Main causes were significant rheumatic mitral stenosis (n = 58, 36%); other causes comprised significant rheumatic mitral regurgitation (MR; n = 10, 6%), mitral valve (MV) prolapse or congenital mitral valvular disease (MVD) (n = 20, 12%), and functional MR (n = 25, 15%). However, mild rheumatic MV disease (n = 4, 3%) or left ventricular (LV) systolic or diastolic dysfunction without significant MR (n = 46, 28%) were also causes of GLA. During median follow-up of 22 months, 42 cases (26%) underwent composite events. MV surgery was related to lower rate of composite events. In multivariate analysis, MV surgery, elevated pulmonary arterial systolic pressure, and increased LA volume index were independent predictors of future events (p < 0.05) regardless of underlying diseases or history of MV surgery. CONCLUSION: Although rheumatic MVD with atrial fibrillation is the main contributor to GLA, longstanding atrial fibrillation with LV dysfunction but without MVD also could be related to GLA. Even in GLA state, accurate measurement of LA volume is crucial for risk stratification for future events, regardless of underlying disease.
Atrial Fibrillation ; Blood Pressure ; Echocardiography ; Follow-Up Studies ; Heart Atria* ; Humans ; Mitral Valve ; Mitral Valve Insufficiency ; Mitral Valve Stenosis ; Multivariate Analysis ; Prognosis* ; Prolapse ; Tertiary Care Centers