title: Systolic wall stress may affect the intramural coronary blood flow velocity in myocardial hypertrophy, independently on the left ventricular mass.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We sought to evaluate the relationship between left ventricular systolic wall stress (LV-SWS) and coronary artery blood flow velocity in patients with LV hypertrophy (LVH).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The study population comprised 38 patients, aged 66.7 +/- 12.7, who were divided into two groups based on the LV-SWS median value. Group A included 19 patients at "low-stress" (92.0 +/- 18.0 mmHg/cm2) and group B other 19 patients at "high-stress" (134.2 +/- 32.3 mmHg/cm2) (P < 0.002). Coronary blood flow velocities were measured both in the left anterior descending (LAD) and in the intramural (IM) arteries. There were no significant between-group differences in the main clinical and echocardiographic parameters. Diastolic velocity in the LAD was also comparable, while it was higher in the IM arterioles of patients from group B than from group A (peak velocity 110.9 +/- 35.2 cm/s vs 92.0 +/- 29.4 cm/s, P < 0.02; mean velocity 78.6 +/- 28.8 vs. 56.0 +/- 20.2 cm/s, P < 0.01, respectively). Overall, moderate, but significative, linear correlation was found between IM peak and mean diastolic velocity and LV-SWS (r = 0.41, P = 0.01, and r = 0.44, P = 0.007, respectively), whereas there was no correlation with wall thickening and LV mass.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Main findings from the present study likely suggest that in patients with mild-to-moderate LVH, high blood flow velocity in the IM arterioles, but not in the LAD, may be related to an increase in LV-SWS, rather independent on the absolute LV mass.
authors.affiliation: Clinical and Experimental Department of Medicine and Pharmacology, Cardiology Unit, University Hospital of Messina, Messina, Italy. cesaredegregorio1@virgilio.it
authors.forename: Cesare
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: de Gregorio
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Micari
authors.forename: Gianluca
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Di Bella
authors.forename: Scipione
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Carerj
authors.forename: Sebastiano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Coglitore
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D003326:Coronary Circulation; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D017379:Hypertrophy, Left Ventricular / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013314:Stress, Mechanical; D013599:Systole; D014463:Ultrasonography; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*