title: Variability of post-exercise pulmonary capillary wedge pressure recovery. Implications for noninvasive echocardiographic diagnostics.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of our study was to assess the course of immediate post-exercise pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP) changes to identify the optimal time window for the noninvasive diagnostics of exercise-induced PCWP elevation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seventy-one patients at risk of heart failure with normal left ventricular ejection fraction underwent simultaneous exercise echocardiography and right heart catheterization. The ratio of early left ventricular filling velocity (E) to early diastolic mitral annular velocity (e') was used to predict noninvasively exercise-induced PCWP elevation. Fifty-one patients had exercise-induced PCWP elevation ≥ 8 mmHg and reached peak exercise PCWP ≥ 20 mmHg. Rapid post-exercise recovery of PCWP within 2 min was achieved in 18 (35.3%) patients. Intermediate post-exercise PCWP recovery at 3 and 4 min was found in 16 (31.4%) patients while late post-exercise PCWP recovery (≥ 5 min) was achieved in 17 (33.3%) patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The course of post-exercise PCWP recovery is highly variable, and a significant proportion of patients have only a brief period (≤ 2 min) of exercise-induced PCWP elevation. This fact should be taken into account in noninvasive assessment of exercise-induced PCWP.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Diseases, ICRC, St. Anne's University Hospital in Brno, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Jaroslav
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Meluzin
authors.forename: Petr
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hude
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Krejci
authors.forename: Lenka
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Spinarova
authors.forename: Pavel
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Leinveber
authors.forename: Radka
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Stepanova
authors.forename: Petr
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nemec
mesh_terms: D006328:Cardiac Catheterization; D018450:Disease Progression; D015150:Echocardiography, Doppler; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005080:Exercise Test; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011669:Pulmonary Wedge Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012146:Rest / Q000502:physiology; D013318:Stroke Volume; D016278:Ventricular Function, Right / Q000502:physiology*