title: Left ventricular function in patients with ankylosing spondylitis and Reiter's disease.
abstract: We have studied left ventricular function by non-invasive methods in 28 patients with ankylosing spondylitis and 14 with Reiter's disease and compared them with 42 normal subjects. A dilated and poorly contracting left ventricle with abnormal systolic time intervals were found in five (18%) of those with ankylosing spondylitis and two (14%) with Reiter's disease. Our results suggest that the high cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in these diseases may be due to abnormality of the myocardium in the absence of valve disease.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016918:Arthritis, Reactive / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003971:Diastole; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods; D004562:Electrocardiography; D006321:Heart / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D013167:Spondylitis, Ankylosing / Q000503:physiopathology*; D013599:Systole