title: Assessment of left ventricular mass and geometry by cardiac single photon emission computed tomography.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy is an independent predictor of increased morbidity and mortality. However, whether assessment of LV mass and geometry by cardiac single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) is feasible remains unclear.
  
  
  METHODS
  We compared LV mass and geometry measured by cardiac SPECT to standard echocardiography in thirty consecutive patients (female 73%n mean age 22.64+/-17 years) who had both cardiac SPECT and echocardiography done less than 1 week apart.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was good correlation between the LV mass (r=0.73, p <0.001) and relative wall thickness (r=0.50, p<0.01) derived by cardiac SPECT to those of standard echocardiography. Using Bland-Altman method, the 95% confident interval of agreement between cardiac SPECT and standard echocardiography ranged from -52 g (5th percentile) to 124 g (95th percentile, mean difference =36+/-45) for LV mass and from -1 (5th percentile) to -0.6 (95th percentile, mean difference =-0.8+/-0.1) for relative wall thickness.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Assessment of left ventricular mass and geometry using cardiac SPECT is feasible and may provide prognostic information beyond measurement of perfusion and function.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Bronx Lebanon Hospital Center, NY 10457, USA.
authors.forename: Yudthsak
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Damrongpipatkij
authors.forename: Jonathan N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Bella
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gorski
authors.forename: Eliot N
authors.initials: EN
authors.lastname: Heller
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D017379:Hypertrophy, Left Ventricular / Q000175:diagnosis*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon / Q000379:methods*