Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging assessment of diastolic dysfunction in a population without heart disease: a gender-based study

OBJECTIVES: Asymptomatic left ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction is increasingly recognised as an important diagnosis. Our goal was to study the prevalence and gender differences in subclinical LV diastolic dysfunction, using cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) at 3 T. METHODS: We prospectively studied 48 volunteers (19 male and 29 female, mean age 49 ± 7 years) with no evidence of cardiovascular disease. We used CMR to measure left atrium (LA) and LV volumes, LV peak filling rate and transmitral flow. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of LV diastolic dysfunction in our cohort varied between 20 % (based on evaluation of LV filing profiles) and 24 % (based on the evaluation of the transmitral flow). The prevalence of diastolic dysfunction was higher in men than in women, independently of the criteria used (P between 0.004 and 0.022). Indexed LV end-diastolic volume, indexed LV stroke volume, indexed LV mass, indexed LA minimum volume and indexed LA maximum volume were significantly greater in men than in women (P < 0.05). All the subjects had LV ejection fractions within the normal range. CONCLUSIONS: It is clinically feasible to study diastolic flow and LV filling with CMR. CMR detected diastolic dysfunction in asymptomatic men and women. KEY POINTS: • CMR imaging offers new possibilities in assessing left ventricular diastolic function. • The prevalence of diastolic dysfunction is higher in men than in women. • The prevalence of some diastolic dysfunction in a normal population is 24 %