Longitudinal and circumferential strain assesment of left and right ventricles in acute myocardial infarction superimposed with microemboli

Background Microvascular obstruction is a major problem after reperfusion therapy of AMI. A recent study reported that longitudinal and circumferential strain after reperfusion therapy is an excellent predictor of left ventricular (LV) dysfunction in patients with anterior wall AMI [1,2]. In the current MRI investigation, we adapted a method routinely used in echocardiography for measuring LV, RV interventricular walls longitudinal strain [3]. Furthermore, we developed a well-controlled AMI superimposed with microemboli model to study LV and RV strain changes and compared it with animals subjected to LAD microembolization or occlusion/reperfusion.