A modified echocardiographic protocol with intrinsic plausibility control to determine intraventricular asynchrony based on TDI and TSI.
BACKGROUND
Established methods to determine asynchrony suffer from high intra- and interobserver variability and failed to improve patient selection for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). Thus, there is a need for easy and robust approaches to reliably assess cardiac asynchrony.


RESULTS
We performed echocardiography in 100 healthy subjects and 33 patients with left bundle branch block (LBBB). To detect intraventricular asynchrony, we combined two established methods, i.e., tissue synchronization imaging (TSI) and tissue Doppler imaging (TDI). The time intervals from the onset of aortic valve opening (AVO) to the peak systolic velocity (S') were measured separately in six basal segments in the apical four-, two-, and three-chamber view. Color-coded TSI served as an intrinsic plausibility control and helped to identify the correct S' measuring point in the TDI curves. Next, we identified the segment with the shortest AVO-S' interval. Since this segment most likely represents vital and intact myocardium it served as a reference for other segments. Segments were considered asynchronous when the delay between the segment in question and the reference segment was above the upper limit of normal delays derived from the control population. Intra- and interobserver variability were 7.0% and 7.7%, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggest that combination of TDI and TSI with intrinsic plausibility control improves intra- and interobserver variability and allows easy and reliable assessment of cardiac asynchrony.
Medizinische Klinik für Kardiologie und Angiologie, Campus Mitte, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany. henryk.dreger@charite.de
Henryk
H
Dreger
Adrian C
AC
Borges
Bruno
B
Ismer
Sebastian
S
Schattke
Berthold
B
Stegemann
Gert
G
Baumann
Christoph
C
Melzer
D000465:Algorithms; D002037:Bundle-Branch Block / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods*; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology*