Systolic/Diastolic Parameters Offer More Detailed Information on Left Ventricular Global Dysfunction than Systolic Parameters

lthough diastolic dysfunction is the initial alteration indilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), and systolic and diastolic dysfunctions generally coexist during the clinical course of DCM, left ventricular ejection fraction (LV-EF) as an entirely systolic parameter is commonly used to assess LV-function in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy. Traditional parameters obtained by mechanocardiography revealed long ago that systolic dysfunction is not only reflected as a decrease in ventricular ejection fraction (LV-EF) – mostly assessed by echocardiography or angiography – but also as a prolongation of the pre-ejection and shortening of ejection time ( = isovolu-metric contraction (ICT)) and relaxation time (IRT). This phenomenon can also be assessed by Doppler echocardiography. The diastolic dysfunction is reflected in alterations in the pat-tern of the inflow velocity of the left ventricle in early and late diastole [1]. Several studies have revealed a higher correla