Impact of global left ventricular afterload on left ventricular function in asymptomatic severe aortic stenosis: a two-dimensional speckle-tracking study.

Aims: The present study sought to assess the effect of global left ventricular (LV) afterload on LV myocardial systolic function in patients with aortic stenosis (AS) and preserved LV ejection fraction. Methods and results: We prospectively examined the LV myocardial deformation (i.e. longitudinal, radial, and circumferential) by two-dimensional speckle tracking in 173 patients with asymptomatic severe AS. Thirty-eight patients (22%) had lowflow as determined by a low stroke volume index (35 mL/m2). By multivariable analysis, four variables emerged as independently associated with low-flow AS: peak Ea velocity (P 1⁄4 0.01), left atrial area index (P 1⁄4 0.017), global LV afterload (P 1⁄4 0.024), and circumferential myocardial deformation (P 1⁄4 0.04). Forty-nine patients (28%) had an increased global LV afterload (5 mmHg mL/m2). Systemic arterial compliance (P 1⁄4 0.001), circumferential myocardial deformation (P 1⁄4 0.024), and left atrial area index (P 1⁄4 0.04) were independently associated with increased global LV load in multivariable analysis. Conclusion: In asymptomatic patients with severe AS, LV ejection fraction markedly underestimates the extent of myocardial sys- tolic impairment. Intrinsic myocardial dysfunction is particularly common in patients with increased global LV after- load, and especially in the subset of patients with low-flow AS