title: Echocardiographic right ventricle longitudinal contraction indices cannot predict ejection fraction in post-operative Fallot children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine in a population of post-operative tetralogy of Fallot patients, the correlation between right ventricle (RV) ejection fractions (EF) computed from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and three echocardiographic indices of RV function: TAPSE, longitudinal strain and strain rate. Indeed, these patients present a pulmonary regurgitation which is responsible for progressive dilatation of the RV. An echocardiographic assessment of the RV function would be very useful in determining the timing of pulmonary revalvulation for Fallot patients. However, these indices are generally based on the ventricle contraction in the long axis direction which is impaired in this population and does not seem to correlate with the EF.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirty-five post-operative tetralogy of Fallot patients and 20 patients with normal RVs were included. In both groups, RVEF, assessed by MRI, was compared with the three echocardiographic indices. Longitudinal strain and strain rates were computed both on the free wall and on the whole RV. No correlation was found between the echocardiographic indices and the MRI EF in our Fallot population. The accuracy of those indices as a diagnostic test of an altered RV was low with Younden's indices varying from -0.18 to 0.5 and areas under the Receiver Operating Characterictic (ROC) curves equal to 0.54 for tricuspid annulus plane systolic excursion, 0.59-0.62 for strain and 0.57-0.63 for strain rate.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Three conventional echocardiographic indices based on RV longitudinal contraction failed to assess the EF in our population of post-operative tetralogy of Fallot patients.
authors: Cardiologie Infantile, CHU Nancy-Brabois, rue du Morvan, Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy, France. l.bonnemains@chu-nancy.fr
authors: Laurent
authors: L
authors: Bonnemains
authors: Bertrand
authors: B
authors: Stos
authors: Thibaud
authors: T
authors: Vaugrenard
authors: Pierre-Yves
authors: PY
authors: Marie
authors: Freddy
authors: F
authors: Odille
authors: Younes
authors: Y
authors: Boudjemline
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D004452:Echocardiography; D005260:Female; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009200:Myocardial Contraction; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013318:Stroke Volume; D013771:Tetralogy of Fallot / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery; D018497:Ventricular Dysfunction, Right / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D055815:Young Adult