title: Comparison of the usefulness of Doppler pressure half-time in mitral stenosis in patients < 65 and > or = 65 years of age.
abstract: Doppler pressure half-time is a reliable method for estimating mitral valve area when net left atrial and ventricular compliance remain stable. The accuracy of Doppler pressure half-time in estimating mitral valve area in older patients is unknown. We studied 80 patients (65 women and 15 men, aged 56 +/- 14 years) with cardiac catheterization and echocardiography. Mitral valve area was calculated using the Gorlin formula and by the Doppler pressure half-time method. Patients were stratified into those aged < 65 years (n = 57), and those aged > or = 65 years (n = 23). The discordance between pressure half-time and Gorlin-derived mitral valve area was assessed and related to multiple clinical, echocardiographic, and hemodynamic variables. The difference between pressure half-time and Gorlin-derived mitral valve area was greater in the older than in the younger patient (0.34 +/- 0.30 vs 0.15 +/- 0.27 cm2, p = 0.009) but the older group had smaller mitral valve areas by the Gorlin method (0.72 +/- 0.18 vs 0.89 +/- 0.32 cm2, p = 0.02) and lower cardiac output. The difference between pressure half-time and Gorlin remained greater in the group of older patients (0.32 +/- 0.30 vs 0.19 +/- 0.22 cm2, p = 0.04), even when the analysis was restricted to patients with similar mitral valve area (< 1 cm2 by the Gorlin method). Using multivariate analysis, age > or = 65 years remained the only significant predictor of the discrepancy between pressure half-time and Gorlin mitral valve area. Thus, when compared with Gorlin-derived mitral valve area, pressure half-time overestimated valve area in older patients, and this technique for estimating mitral valve area should be used with caution in patients > or = 65 years of age.
authors.affiliation: Evans Memorial Department of Clinical Research, Boston University Medical Center Hospital, Massachusetts, USA.
authors.forename: V M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Abascal
authors.forename: P R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Moreno
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
authors.forename: V M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Monterroso
authors.forename: I F
authors.initials: IF
authors.lastname: Palacios
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Weyman
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Davidoff
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D006328:Cardiac Catheterization; D015150:Echocardiography, Doppler; D005260:Female; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008946:Mitral Valve Stenosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*