Reproducibility in echocardiographic assessment of the left ventricular global and regional function, the HUNT study.
OBJECTIVE
The study aimed to compare the inter-observer reproducibility of new and traditional measurements of the left ventricular (LV) global and regional function.


RESULTS
Two experienced echocardiographers performed 20 complete echo/Doppler examinations and 50 analyses on ten healthy subjects. All recordings were analysed for systolic and diastolic conventional and deformation measurements by both echocardiographers. Inter-observer mean error (absolute difference divided by the mean) was 4% and lowest (P = 0.001) for systolic M-mode annulus excursion. Mean error for the regional deformation indices was significantly higher than for all the global measurements (all P < 0.001). Mean error for analyses of the same recording was 34% (P = 0.002) lower for global systolic indices and 44% (P < 0.001) lower for global diastolic indices than inter-observer mean error for analyses made in separate recordings.


CONCLUSIONS
Systolic M-mode annulus excursion showed better inter-observer reproducibility than other traditional and newer measurements of LV systolic and diastolic function. Repeated analyses of the same recordings underestimate the more clinically relevant inter-observer reproducibility by approximately 40% for most measurements of LV function.
Thorstensen
Anders
A
Department of circulation and medical imaging, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway. anders.thorstensen@ntnu.no
Dalen
Havard
H
Amundsen
Brage Høyem
BH
Aase
Svein Arne
SA
Stoylen
Asbjørn
A
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D003971:Diastole; D004452:Echocardiography; D015150:Echocardiography, Doppler; D017079:Exercise Tolerance; D005260:Female; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D020127:Recovery of Function; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013318:Stroke Volume; D013599:Systole; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left