Comparison of manual and artificial intelligence based quantification of myocardial strain by feature tracking-a cardiovascular MR study in health and disease

Cardiovascular magnetic resonance reveals myocardial involvement in patients with active stage of inflammatory bowel disease

BACKGROUND

Active inflammatory bowel disease (A-IBD) but not remission (R-IBD) has been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular death and hospitalization for heart failure.

OBJECTIVES

Using cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR), this study aims to assess adverse myocardial remodeling in patients with IBD in correlation with disease activity.

METHODS

Forty-four IBD patients without cardiovascular disease (24 female, median-age: 39.5 years, 26 A-IBD, 18 R-IBD) and 44 matched healthy volunteers (HV) were prospectively enrolled. The disease stage was determined by endoscopic and patient-reported criteria. Participants underwent CMR for cardiac phenotyping: cine imaging and strain analysis were performed to assess ventricular function. T1 mapping, extracellular volume and late-gadolinium enhanced images were obtained to assess focal and diffuse myocardial fibrosis. Simultaneous T1 and T2 elevation (T1 > 1049.3 ms, T2 > 54 ms) was considered to indicate a myocardial segment was inflamed.

RESULTS

16/44 (16.4%) IBD patients described dyspnea on exertion and 10/44 (22.7%) reported chest pain. A-IBD patients showed impaired ventricular function, indicated by reduced global circumferential and radial strain despite preserved left-ventricular ejection fraction. 16% of all IBD patients had focal fibrosis in a non-ischemic pattern. A-IDB patients had increased markers of diffuse left ventricular fibrosis (T1-values: A-IBD: 1022.0 ± 34.83 ms, R-IBD: 1010.10 ± 32.88 ms, HV: 990.61 ± 29.35 ms, p < .01). Significantly more participants with A-IDB (8/26, 30.8%) had at least one inflamed myocardial segment than patients in remission (0/18) and HV (1/44, 2.3%, p < .01). Markers of diffuse fibrosis correlated with disease activity.

CONCLUSION

This study, using CMR, provides evidence of myocardial involvement and patterns of adverse left ventricular remodeling in patients with IBD.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION

ISRCTN30941346.

Reference ranges of computed tomography-derived strains in four cardiac chambers

Research on cardiovascular diseases using CT-derived strain is gaining momentum, yet there is a paucity of information regarding reference standard values beyond echocardiography, particularly in cardiac chambers other than the left ventricle (LV). We aimed to compile CT-derived strain values from the four cardiac chambers in healthy adults and assess the impact of age and sex on myocardial strains. This study included 101 (mean age: 55.2 ± 9.0 years, 55.4% men) consecutive healthy individuals who underwent multiphase cardiac CT. CT-derived cardiac strains, including LV global and segmental longitudinal, circumferential, and transverse strains, left atrial (LA), right atrial (RA), and right ventricle (RV) strains were measured by the commercially available software. Strain values were classified and compared by their age and sex. The normal range of CT-derived LV global longitudinal strain (GLS), global circumferential strain (GCS), and global radial strain (GRS) were -20.2 ± 2.7%, -27.9 ± 4.1%, and 49.4 ± 12.1%, respectively. For LA, reservoir strain, pump strain, and conduit strain were 28.6 ± 8.5%, 13.2 ± 6.4%, and 15.5 ± 8.6%, respectively. The GLS of RA and RV were 27.9 ± 10.9% and -22.0 ± 5.7%, respectively. The absolute values of GLS of RA and RV of women were higher than that in men (32.4 ± 11.4 vs. 24.3 ± 9.1 and -25.2 ± 4.7 vs. -19.4 ± 5.0, respectively; p<0.001, both). Measurement of CT-derived strain in four cardiac chambers is feasible. The reference ranges of CT strains in four cardiac chambers can be used for future studies of various cardiac diseases using the cardiac strains.

Trajectories of functional and structural myocardial parameters in post-COVID-19 syndrome-insights from mid-term follow-up by cardiovascular magnetic resonance

Introduction

Myocardial tissue alterations in patients with post-Coronavirus disease 2019 syndrome (PCS) are often subtle and mild. Reports vary in the prevalence of non-ischemic and ischemic injuries as well as the extent of ongoing myocardial inflammation. The exact relevance of these myocardial alterations is not fully understood. This study aimed at describing the trajectories of myocardial alterations in PCS patients by mid-term follow-up with cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR).

Methods

This study entails a retrospective analysis of symptomatic PCS patients referred for follow-up CMR between August 2020 and May 2023 due to mildly affected or reduced left or right ventricular function (LV and RV, respectively) and structural myocardial alterations, e.g., focal and diffuse fibrosis, on baseline scans. Follow-up CMR protocol consisted of cine images and full coverage native T1 and T2 mapping. Baseline and follow-up scans were compared using t-tests or Wilcoxon tests. Post-hoc analysis was carried out in a subgroup based on the change of LV stroke volume (SV) between scans.

Results

In total, 43 patients [median age (interquartile range) 46 (37-56) years, 33 women] received follow-ups 347 (167-651) days after initial diagnosis. A decrease in symptoms was recorded on follow-ups (p < 0.03) with 23 patients being asymptomatic at follow-ups [symptomatic at baseline 43/43 (100%) vs. symptomatic at follow-up 21/43 (49%), p < 0.001]. Functional improvement was noted for LV-SV [83.3 (72.7-95.0) vs. 84.0 (77.0-100.3) ml; p = 0.045], global radial [25.3% (23.4%-27.9%) vs. 27.4% (24.4%-33.1%); p < 0.001], and circumferential strains [-16.5% (-17.5% to -15.6%) vs. -17.2% (-19.5% to -16.1%); p < 0.001]. In total, 17 patients had an LV-SV change >10% on follow-up scans (5 with a decrease and 12 with an increase), with LV-SV, RV-SV, and global longitudinal strain being discriminatory variables on baseline scans (p = 0.01, 0.02, and 0.04, respectively). T1- or T2-analysis revealed no changes, remaining within normal limits.

Conclusion

Symptomatic load as well as blood pressures decreased on follow-up. CMR did not detect significant changes in tissue parameters; however, volumetric, specifically LV-SV, and deformation indexes improved during mid-term follow-up.

Artificial Intelligence in Heart Failure: Friend or Foe?

In recent times, there have been notable changes in cardiovascular medicine, propelled by the swift advancements in artificial intelligence (AI). The present work provides an overview of the current applications and challenges of AI in the field of heart failure. It emphasizes the "garbage in, garbage out" issue, where AI systems can produce inaccurate results with skewed data. The discussion covers issues in heart failure diagnostic algorithms, particularly discrepancies between existing models. Concerns about the reliance on the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) for classification and treatment are highlighted, showcasing differences in current scientific perceptions. This review also delves into challenges in implementing AI, including variable considerations and biases in training data. It underscores the limitations of current AI models in real-world scenarios and the difficulty in interpreting their predictions, contributing to limited physician trust in AI-based models. The overarching suggestion is that AI can be a valuable tool in clinicians' hands for treating heart failure patients, as far as existing medical inaccuracies have been addressed before integrating AI into these frameworks.