Is the aging heart similar to the diabetic heart? Evaluation of LV function of the aging heart with Tissue Doppler Imaging

Left ventricular long axis tissue Doppler systolic velocity is independently related to heart rate and body size

Background

The physiological factors which affect left ventricular (LV) long-axis function are not fully defined. We investigated the relationships of resting heart rate and body size with the peak velocities and amplitudes of LV systolic and early diastolic long axis motion, and also with long-axis contraction duration.

Methods

Two groups of adults free of cardiac disease underwent pulsed-wave tissue Doppler imaging at the septal and lateral mitral annular borders. Group 1 (n = 77) were healthy subjects <50 years of age and Group 2 (n = 65) were subjects between 40–80 years of age referred for stress echocardiography. Systolic excursion (SExc), duration (SDur) and peak velocity (s') and early diastolic excursion (EDExc) and peak velocity (e') were measured.

Results

SExc was not correlated with heart rate, height or body surface area (BSA) for either LV wall in either group, but SDur was inversely correlated with heart rate for both walls and both groups, and after adjustment for heart rate, males in both groups had a shorter septal SDur. Septal and lateral s` were independently and positively correlated with SExc, heart rate and height in both groups, independent of sex and age. There were no correlations of heart rate, height or BSA with either e` or EDExc for either wall in either group.

Conclusion

Heart rate and height independently modify the relationship between s` and SExc, but neither are related to EDExc or e`. These findings suggest that s` and SExc cannot be used interchangeably for the assessment of LV long-axis contraction.

Left Atrial Longitudinal Speckle Tracking Echocardiography in Healthy Aging Heart

Background:

Left atrial volume (LAV) and function are connected to the left ventricular (LV) haemodynamic patterns. To define the changes of LAV and functions to counterbalance age-related LV diastolic impairment, this study was undertaken.

Methods:

2D-Left Atrial Speckle Tracking Echocardiography (2D-LASTE) was used to define both LAV and functions in an aged healthy population (group II) respect to adult healthy controls (group I).

Results:

Results showed an increasing of left atrial volume indices (LAVI) (maximum, minimum, pre-a) in old subjects in comparison with those obtained in adult healthy controls. On the contrary, LAVI passive emptying unchanged and LAVI passive fraction reduced with advanced age. Finally, LAVI active emptying increased with advancing age to compensate the age-dependent left ventricular diastolic dysfunction. The values of global systolic strain (S); systolic strain rate (SrS); early diastolic strain rate (SrE), and late diastolic strain rate (SrA) were also calculated. With reference to the function, our study confirmed that LA conduit function deteriorates with age while booster pump increases respect to adult controls and reservoir phase is maintained.

Conclusions:

The echocardiographic findings obtained with conventional and tissue Doppler confirmed the connection between LA functions and volumes and age-related LV dysfunction. Conclusively, 2D-LASTE appears to be a reliable tool to evaluate the role of LA to compensate the derangement of left ventricle happening with ageing.

Increased myocardial dysfunction, dyssynchrony, and epicardial fat across the lifespan in healthy males

Background

Evaluation of sensitive myocardial mechanics with speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) across the lifespan may reveal early indicators of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) and left ventricular (LV) myocardial dyssynchrony; subclinical risk-factors of CVD, are of particular clinical interest. However, the evolution of EAT and LV-dyssynchrony across the lifespan, and their influence on myocardial dysfunction remains unclear. We aimed to establish a profile of the healthy aging-heart using conventional, tissue-Doppler imaging (TDI) and speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE), while also exploring underlying contributions from EAT and LV-dyssynchrony towards LV myocardial mechanics, independent of blood biology.

Methods

Healthy males aged 19–94 years were recruited through University-wide advertisements in Victoria and New-South Wales, Australia. Following strict exclusion criteria, basic clinical and comprehensive echocardiographic profiles (conventional, TDI and STE) were established. LV-dyssynchrony was calculated from the maximum-delay of time-to-peak velocity/strain in the four LV-annulus sites (TDI), and six LV-segments (STE longitudinal and circumferential axes). Epicardial fat diameter was obtained from two-dimensional grey-scale images in the parasternal long-axis. Blood biological measures included glycemia, hsCRP, triglycerides, total cholesterol, high-density and low-density lipoprotein levels.

Results

Three groups of 15 were assigned to young (<40 years), middle (40–65 years), and older (>65) aged categories. Five participants were excluded from STE analyses due to inadequate image quality. Decreased longitudinal strain, increased circumferential apical strain and LV twist were age-related. Moreover, independent of blood biology, significant increases were observed across age categories for EAT (young: 2.5 ± 0.9 mm, middle: 3.9 ± 1.0 mm, older 5.7 ± 2.4 mm; p < 0.01), longitudinal STE-dyssynchrony (young: 42 ± 7.7 ms, middle: 58.8 ± 18.9 ms, older 88.6 ± 18.2 ms; p < 0.05), and circumferential-basal STE-dyssynchrony (young: 50.2 ± 20.5 ms, middle: 75.9 ± 20.6 ms, older 97.9 ± 20.2 ms; p < 0.05). These variables collectively explained 37% and 31% (p < 0.01) of longitudinal strain and LV twist, respectively.

Conclusions

This study enabled comprehensive profiling of LV mechanics at different stages of aging using sensitive echocardiographic technology. Novel findings included increased epicardial fat, and both longitudinal and circumferential LV-dyssynchrony across the healthy age groups. These factors may be key underlying contributors to myocardial dysfunction during aging, and their recognition may promote an advanced understanding of early signs of cardiovascular disease.

Echocardiographic abnormalities in a cohort of Chinese patients with systemic lupus erythematosus--a retrospective analysis of eighty-five cases

OBJECTIVE

To investigate echocardiographic abnormalities in a cohort of Chinese patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

METHODS

Eighty-five SLE patients who were hospitalized at our institution from January 2008 to June 2009 were included. Their clinical manifestations, electrocardiogram, chest x-ray, CT scan, and echocardiographic data were analyzed in relation to age, disease duration, and SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI).

RESULTS

Echocardiography showed abnormalities in 53 patients (62.35%), involving valves in 56.5% (n = 48), pericardium in 25.9%, left and right ventricle enlargement in 17.65% and 1.18%, respectively, and auricle in 10.59% and 1.18% of the patients, respectively. The left ventricle showed decreased compliance in 10.29%, impaired relaxation in 14.12%, and abnormal wall motion in 42.35% of the patients. Interventricular septum thickness, left ventricular posterior wall thickness, and isovolumic relaxation time were positively correlated with age (r = 0.42, 0.33, and 0.39, respectively, p < 0.01 for all variables), and disease duration (r = 0.22, 0.21, and 0.32, respectively; p < 0.05). Left atrial and ventricular size were correlated with age (r = 0.32 and 0.41, p > 0.01) and SLEDAI (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Cardiac, especially valvular abnormalities are common in SLE patients and increase with age and disease duration and activity. Inclusion of echocardiography in the clinical evaluation of SLE patients could help identify an important subset of patients with cardiac abnormalities.