Objective: To quantitatively assess the left ventricular systolic dyssynchrony in patients with chronic heart failure based on the regional systolic dyssynchrony index (R-SDI) derived from real-time three-dimensional echocardiography (RT-3DE), and investigate the relation between R-SDI and the left ventricular systolic function.
Methods: Forty-two patients with chronic heart failure (LVEF<50%) were classified into severe dysfunction group (group A, LVEF<40%) and mild dysfunction group (group B, LVEF≥40%), with 33 healthy subjects as the control group (LVEF>50%). RT-3DE was performed for each subject to obtain the left volume-time curves and the 16, 12, and 6 segment R-SDI. The value of R-SDI in assessing left ventricular systolic dyssynchrony and its correlation with LVEF were analyzed.
Results: The 16, 12, and 6R-SDI were significantly higher in the chronic heart failure group than in the control group (P<0.01). The R-SDI of group A was significantly greater than those of group B in the chronic heart failure patients (P<0.01), and 16R-SDI, 12R-SDI, and 6R-SDI were inversely correlated with LVEF of the patients (r=-0.843, -0.840, and -0.841, respectively, P<0.01).
Conclusions: R-SDI can be used to assess the left ventricular mechanic systolic dyssynchrony, and the degree of the dyssynchrony is inversely correlated with LVEF. RT-3DE can serve as a valuable modality for quantitative evaluation of left ventricular dyssynchrony in chronic heart failure patients.