Patterns of global and regional systolic and diastolic function in the normal right ventricle assessed by ultrafast computed tomography

Department of Internal Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City.

A detailed evaluation of global and regional systolic function and diastolic filling of the human right ventricle has not been previously reported. Ultrafast computed tomography enables simultaneous imaging of the right and left ventricles at an 8 mm slice thickness with a scanning rate of 17 frames/s (50 ms acquisition intervals). In 10 normal men (mean age 26 +/- 4 years) early diastolic filling data were fit to a third order polynomial curve and the peak rate of diastolic filling and time to peak filling were determined globally and regionally at three distinct ventricular levels (apex to base) within each ventricle. The right and left ventricular stroke volumes were not statistically different (89 +/- 8 ml and 90 +/- 8 ml, p = NS), neither were the peak filling rates as referenced to the stroke volume (4.9 +/- 0.9 and 5.3 +/- 0.8 stroke volumes/s, p = NS). Time to peak filling rate was not different between the two ventricles (154 +/- 33 and 161 +/- 18 ms, p = NS). However, reference of stroke volumes and absolute peak filling rates to end-diastolic volumes demonstrated lower dynamic values for the right ventricle (ejection fraction: right ventricle 57 +/- 4%; left ventricle 68 +/- 5%, p less than 0.05, and peak filling rate: right ventricle 2.7 +/- 0.4 end-diastolic volumes/s; left ventricle 3.6 +/- 0.5, p less than 0.05, respectively).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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