Wide limits of agreement between left ventricular stroke volume, right ventricular stroke volume and aortic and pulmonary forward flow

Background The quantification of valvular regurgitation by CMR is usually a second-line diagnostic tool that is used when echocardiography has proven inconclusive. According to guidelines are aortic and mitral regurgitations considered severe if the regurgitation volume > 60 ml and regurgitation fraction > 50 %. Regurgitation of a single heart valve may be calculated by comparing LVSV and RVSV derived from multislice ventricular planimetry. In isolated aortic and pulmonary regurgitation, phase contrast velocity sequences can be used as an alternative or complementary method to quantify the regurgitation volume and fraction. This method can be subject to error due to motion of the valve annulus, elastic expansion of the aortic root and inherent sequence errors. In the case of isolated mitral and tricuspid regurgitation the LVSV or RVSV can alternatively be set in relation to flow measurements in the aorta and pulmonary artery for grading the regurgitation.