title: Argument for a Doppler echocardiography during exercise in assessing asymptomatic patients with severe aortic stenosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Exercise stress testing (EST) is recommended by guidelines to risk-stratify patients with asymptomatic valvular aortic stenosis (AS), though the role of quantitative exercise-Doppler echocardiography has rarely been studied. This prospective study sought to correlate standard EST results with the haemodynamic measurements made during exercise by Doppler echocardiography.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We performed rest and semi-supine exercise Doppler echocardiography in 44 consecutive patients (mean age=68+/-12 years) with aortic valve areas<or=0.6 cm2/m2. The effective aortic valve area (EOA), cardiac output (CO), maximal transvalvular velocity, and pulmonary pressure were monitored over the test. No serious adverse event was observed. EST was positive in 26 (Group 1) and negative in 18 (Group 2) patients. Baseline echocardiographic measurements were similar (EOA 0.77+/-0.15 vs. 0.78+/-0.14 cm2; CO 5.5+/-1.6 vs. 5.9+/-2 L/min) in both groups. Exercise-induced changes in CO (+2.9+/-2 vs. +4.3+/-1.8 L/min, P=0.04) and EOA (-0.04+/-0.18 vs. +0.15+/-0.24 cm2, P=0.015) were significantly greater in Group 2. A correlation between changes in EOA and changes in CO during exercise was observed, but significantly higher in Group 2 (P=0.04).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the presence of severe asymptomatic AS, exercise Doppler echocardiography, assessing the mechanisms behind a positive EST, appears very promising but further studies with prognosis assessment remain necessary.
authors.affiliation: Département de Cardiologie et Maladies Vasculaires, Centre Cardio-Pneumologique, CHU Pontchaillou, 2 rue Henri Le Guilloux, 35033 Rennes Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Guillaume
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Leurent
authors.forename: Erwan
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Donal
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: de Place
authors.forename: Céline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chabanne
authors.forename: Renaud
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gervais
authors.forename: Claire
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fougerou
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: le Helloco
authors.forename: Jean-Claude
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Daubert
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mabo
authors.forename: Marcel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Laurent
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001024:Aortic Valve Stenosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D002302:Cardiac Output; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods; D015150:Echocardiography, Doppler / Q000379:methods*; D025401:Echocardiography, Stress / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006439:Hemodynamics / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011336:Probability; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012016:Reference Values; D012044:Regression Analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013318:Stroke Volume