title: Accuracy and reproducibility of left ventricular mass measurement by subcostal M-mode echocardiography in hypertensive patients and professional bicyclists.
abstract: In some patients, left ventricular (LV) mass cannot be evaluated by M-mode echocardiography because the parasternal long-axis view is not available. The aim of this study was to determine whether the subcostal view obtained by M-mode echocardiography under 2-dimensional guidance allows accurate and reproducible LV mass determination. Using the cube formula, LV mass was calculated, from parasternal and subcostal views in 96 subjects: 73 hypertensives and 23 professional bicyclists, covering a wide range of LV dimensions. M-mode tracings were read by 2 experienced echocardiographers and the interobserver variability was evaluated. With use of the subcostal view, the interobserver reproducibility, expressed as observer 1-observer 2, was excellent: -0.3 +/- 1.3 mm for LV diastolic diameter, -0.1 +/- 1.0 mm for ventricular diastolic septal thickness, 0.2 +/- 0.6 mm for diastolic free wall thickness and 0.03 +/- 16.7 g for LV mass. In 96% of cases, the difference in LV mass between the 2 observers did not exceed 30 g. With use of the parasternal and subcostal approaches, LV mass was not statistically different (202.6 +/- 2.2 g and 206.5 +/- 2.0 g, respectively) and the difference was < 52 g (clinically significant threshold) in 91 of 96 cases. It is concluded that, using the cube formula, LV mass calculation based on the subcostal view was accurate and not statistically different from that provided by the usual parasternal approach.
authors.affiliation: Centre de Médecine Préventive Cardio-Vasculaire, Hôpital Broussais, Paris, France.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Abergel
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Vaur
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Khellaf
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Menard
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chatellier
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001642:Bicycling; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D017379:Hypertrophy, Left Ventricular / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015588:Observer Variation; D015203:Reproducibility of Results