title: Incremental Value of Two Dimensional Speckle Tracking Echocardiography in the Functional Assessment and Characterization of Subclinical Left Ventricular Dysfunction.
abstract: Subclinical left ventricular (LV) dysfunction refers to subtle abnormalities in LV function which typically precede a reduction in the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). The assessment of myocardial function using LVEF, a radial metric of systolic function, is subject to load dependence, intra-observer and inter-observer variability. Reductions in LVEF typically manifest late in the disease process thus compromising the ability to intervene before irreversible impairment of systolic performance sets in. 2-Dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2D-STE), a novel strain imaging modality has shown promise as a sensitive indicator of myocardial contractility. It arms the clinician with a powerful and practical tool to rapidly quantify cardiac mechanics, circumventing several inherent limitations of conventional echocardiography. This article highlights the incremental utility of 2D-STE in the detection of subclinical LV dysfunction.
authors.forename: Prasad
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gunasekaran
authors.forename: Sidakpal
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Panaich
authors.forename: Alexandros
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Briasoulis
authors.forename: Shaun
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cardozo
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiology, Wayne State University, Detroit Medical Center, 3990 John R, 8-Brush, Harper University Hospital, Detroit, Michigan-48201. United States.
authors.forename: Luis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Afonso
mesh_terms: D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D015588:Observer Variation; D013599:Systole; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left