Changes in the parameters of left ventricular diastolic function according to age on tissue Doppler imaging.

OBJECTIVE To determine the correlation between diastolic velocities on tissue Doppler imaging and age in a sample of healthy adults and to correlate age with the velocities of transmitral and pulmonary vein flows. METHODS Echocardiographic assessment of 51 healthy individuals, whose ages ranged from 21 to 69 years. The diastolic myocardial velocities were recorded on tissue Doppler imaging. The velocities of the transmitral and pulmonary vein flows were also determined. RESULTS The initial basal septal and basal lateral diastolic myocardial velocities showed an inverse correlation with age [r = -0.40 (P = 0.004), and r = -0.60 (P = 0.0001), respectively]. The atriogenic velocities of tissue Doppler imaging correlated directly with age [r = 0.56 (P = 0.0001) in the basal septal segment, and r = 0.50 (P = 0.0001) in the basal lateral segment]. The velocities of transmitral and pulmonary vein flows also correlated with age. CONCLUSION Age correlates with the tissue Doppler diastolic myocardial velocities and with the velocities of transmitral and pulmonary vein flows. In healthy individuals, the parameters of left ventricular diastolic function vary with the natural evolution of age.