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Assessment of right ventricular function

Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK

Correspondence to:
Dr L Williams, Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT UK; L.K.Williams@bham.ac.uk

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

The right ventricle has traditionally received less consideration than the left ventricle. In recent years this interest has increased with the recognition of the critical role of right ventricular performance in determining the clinical outcome and decision-making in patients with both clinical heart failure and congenital heart disease. In this issue of Heart, Missant et al¹ (see online only article on p e15) propose a non-invasive method for assessment of RV contractility that is less load-dependent than currently used techniques and that correlates with invasive pressure–volume assessment of RV function.

The right ventricle is a structurally and functionally complex chamber, with a shape less amenable to geometric simplification for the purpose of volume estimation than the left ventricle, and a heavily trabeculated endocardial surface. In addition, its substernal position makes echocardiographic assessment of its size and function difficult. When assessing RV function, it is necessary to bear in . . . [Full text of this article]

Related Article

Load-sensitivity of regional tissue deformation in the right ventricle: isovolumic versus ejection-phase indices of contractility

C Missant, S Rex, P Claus, L Mertens, and P F Wouters
Heart 2008 94: e15. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]