Incremental value of left ventricular diastolic function reserve index for predicting exercise capacity in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

The changes of left ventricular diastolic function during exercise are heterogeneous in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). We sought to investigate whether exertional changes of mitral annular velocities and plasma N-terminal-pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) concentration are associated with exercise capacity in patients with HCM. After a comprehensive echocardiographic study, 32 patients with HCM performed symptom-limited graded supine bicycle exercise. Echocardiographic Doppler parameters were measured at each stage of exercise. Blood samples were collected at rest and immediately after exercise to determine the concentration of pro-BNP. Resting pro-BNP (r = -0.620, P 740 mg/dL), the predictive accuracy for exercise capacity could be improved (for