Background Perfusion dyssynchrony analysis provides a novel insight into the evaluation of myocardial ischaemia due to coronary artery disease (CAD). Perfusion dyssynchrony indices measure differences in the temporal distribution of the wash-in of contrast agents across the left ventricular wall. In a previous 2D study the temporal dyssynchrony of LV perfusion was measured using four indices va...

BACKGROUND Chagas cardiomyopathy is one important cause of heart failure in Latin America. Ventricular dyssynchrony may be a factor of decompensation in the course of this disease, but there are no data on its prevalence and its main prognostic implications yet. OBJECTIVE Describe prevalence and prognostic value of ventricular dyssynchrony in Chagas cardiomyopathy. METHODS 56 patients with ...

The normal electrical cardiac activation sequence is required for optimal left ventricular (LV) contraction and efficient pump function. Pacing that is conducted at virtually any ventricular site disturbs the natural activation pattern and ventricular contraction because the applied impulse travels slowly through the myocardium rather than through the rapidly conducting His-Purkinje system. Thi...

Introduction: Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) has proved successful in larger patient populations as an adjunctive therapy for patients with drug-refractory heart failure and ventricular conduction delay. However, individual responsiveness to CRT is not yet highly predictable. Around 30% of patients do not appear to benefit from CRT [1]. This can either be attributed to inappropriate pa...

AIMS Mechanical dyssynchrony has been postulated to play a pathophysiologic role in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). METHODS AND RESULTS We quantified left ventricular (LV) systolic dyssynchrony in 130 HFpEF patients with NYHA class II-IV symptoms, ejection fraction (EF) ≥45%, and NT-proBNP levels >400 pg/mL enrolled in the PARAMOUNT trial, and compared them to 40 healt...

BACKGROUND Cardiac resynchronization therapy produces both short-term hemodynamic and long-term symptomatic/mortality benefits in symptomatic heart failure patients with a QRS duration >120 ms. This is conventionally believed to be due principally to relief of dyssynchrony, although we recently showed that relief of external constraint to left ventricular filling may also play a role. In this s...

BACKGROUND Conventional pacemaker implantation induces left ventricular (LV) dyssynchrony, which might affect the LV function. We sought to evaluate the impact of different right ventricular (RV) pacing sites on the LV dyssynchrony and performance. METHODS Comprehensive echocardiographic evaluation including the atrio-ventricular, inter- and intra-ventricular dyssynchrony based on M-mode, con...

AIMS This study examined the impact of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) by triangle ventricular pacing (Tri-V) on left ventricular (LV) function and dyssynchrony. METHODS AND RESULTS Twenty-one patients with NYHA class III or IV heart failure were studied. For Tri-V, two right ventricular (RV) leads were connected to the CRT device via a Y-connector with one lead anchored at the RV ape...

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES The aim of the study is to build cardiac wall motion models to characterize mechanical dyssynchrony and predict pacing sites for the left ventricle of the heart in cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). MATERIALS AND METHODS Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging data from 20 patients are used, in which half have heart failure problems. We propose two spatio-temporal ve...