Do additional echocardiographic variables increase the accuracy of E/e' for predicting left ventricular filling pressure in normal ejection fraction? An echocardiographic and invasive hemodynamic study.
BACKGROUND
There are few data on adding left atrial volume index (LAVi) or pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PAP) to the ratio of early mitral inflow to mitral annular velocity (E/e') for the estimation of left ventricular (LV) filling pressure in patients with preserved LV ejection fractions (LVEFs) (>50%).


METHODS
Patients underwent echocardiography within 20 minutes of cardiac catheterization. Echocardiographic variables were compared with invasively measured LV preatrial contraction pressure (pre-A).


RESULTS
Of the 122 patients studied (mean age, 55 +/- 9 years; mean LVEF, 61 +/- 6%), 67 (55%) were women, 108 (88%) had hypertension, and 79 (65%) had significant coronary artery disease at catheterization. E/e' was significantly correlated with pre-A (R = 0.63, P < .0001) compared with LAVi (R = 0.49, P < .001) and PAP (R = 0.48, P < .001). E/e' > 13 had sensitivity of 70% and specificity of 93% (area under the curve [AUC], 0.82; P < .0001), LAVi > 31 mL/m2 had sensitivity of 78% and specificity of 76% (AUC, 0.80, P < .001), and PAP > 28 mm Hg had sensitivity of 80% and specificity of 64% for pre-A > 15 mm Hg (AUC, 0.77, P < .001). Adding LAVi >31 mL/m2 for E/e' = 8 to 13 significantly increased the accuracy of E/e' > 13 alone (sensitivity, 87%; specificity, 88%; AUC, 0.89; P = .01 for comparison). However, adding PAP > 28 mm Hg for E/e' = 8 to 13 did not significantly increase the accuracy of E/e' > 13 alone (AUC, 0.82; sensitivity, 82%; specificity, 72%; P = NS for comparison).


CONCLUSIONS
In patients with preserved LVEFs, adding LAVi > 31 mL/m2 to E/e' (when E/e' was in the gray zone, but not when E/e' was >13) significantly increased the accuracy of E/e' alone for the estimation of LV filling pressure. These data support the notion of using several, rather than any single, Doppler echocardiographic parameter for the accurate assessment of LV diastolic function.
Department of Medicine, Section of Cardiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA. hisham.dokainish@phri.ca
Hisham
H
Dokainish
John S
JS
Nguyen
Ranjita
R
Sengupta
Manu
M
Pillai
Mahboob
M
Alam
Jaromir
J
Bobek
Nasser
N
Lakkis
D001794:Blood Pressure; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013318:Stroke Volume; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*