title: Echocardiographic assessment of maximum and minimum left atrial volumes: a population-based study of middle-aged and older subjects without apparent cardiovascular disease.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to obtain reference values of maximum and minimum left atrial volumes (maxLAV and minLAV, respectively) in a population-based subset without apparent cardiovascular disease or other factors potentially associated with left atrial enlargement. Because left ventricular diastolic dysfunction is commonly found in elderly subjects, we also tried to identify the presence of possible preclinical diastolic dysfunction in the study population. A population-based sample of 168 subjects (127 men and 41 women) underwent two-dimensional echocardiography using the single-plane disc method to determine maxLAV and minLAV. maxLAV and minLAV were indexed to body surface area (maxLAVi and minLAVi, respectively). maxLAVi was independent of age and sex, and produced reference limits (mean ± 1.96 SD) of 15-37 mL/m(2). minLAVi was correlated with age, and produced estimated reference limits of 3-15 and 7-23 mL/m(2) in 40- and 80-year-old subjects, respectively. Based on the age-dependent reference values from the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging, <5 % of the study population had possible preclinical left ventricular diastolic dysfunction. The present study established normal ranges for maxLAVi and minLAVi in a well-characterized population-based subset without apparent cardiovascular disease or other factors potentially associated with left atrial volume enlargement.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Physiology, Västmanland County Hospital, SE-72189, Västerås, Sweden.
authors.forename: Egil
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Henriksen
authors.forename: Jonas
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Selmeryd
authors.forename: Jerzy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Leppert
authors.forename: Pär
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hedberg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D058070:Asymptomatic Diseases; D016279:Atrial Function, Left; D003971:Diastole; D015150:Echocardiography, Doppler; D005260:Female; D006325:Heart Atria / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015588:Observer Variation; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013318:Stroke Volume; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left