Myocardial Deformation by Echocardiogram after Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation

Myocardial deformation (strain) analysis may be done through echocardiography from data obtained by tissue doppler technique or two-dimensional images from speckle tracking, allowing the calculation of longitudinal, circumferential and radial deformations of myocardial fibers.1,2 Myocardial strain analysis has recently been used in the evaluation of regional myocardial movement and function and in the systolic timeto-peak calculation which studies cardiac synchronicity and myocardial electromechanical coupling.1 In clinical practice, conventional echocardiographic investigation is helpful in detecting global myocardial dysfunction and alterations in ventricular segmental contractility. In cardiotoxicity from the use of chemotherapeutics, we may find alterations in cardiac mechanics with no modification of the left ventricle ejection fraction (LVEF). Thus, the analysis of myocardial deformation brings relevant information in the analysis of regional ventricular systolic dysfunction in subclinical conditions.2