Cardiovascular changes in patients with acromegaly assessed by CMR

Results In patients with acromegaly left ventricular (LV) mass index (LVMi) was increased (65.7 vs. 45.8 g/m2, p=0.0021) and was observed in both females (58.8 v. 40.9 g/m2, p=0.0028) and males (71.1 vs. 56.7 g/m2, p=0.0286) compared to matched controls. The LVMi did not correlate with the serum insulin growth factor (IGF) activity (r=0.099, p=0.745) or age (r=-0.08, p=0.175). Patients with acromegaly had significantly higher cardiac index (CI; 3.7 vs. 3.0 l/min/m2, p=0.021) However, there were no differences between end diastolic volume index (EDVi; 86.9 vs. 75.4 ml/m2, p=0.0649), end systolic volume index (ESVi; 35.1 vs. 29.3 ml/m2, p=0.1662) and ejection fraction (EF; 60 vs. 59 %, p=0.327) in acromegaly group and controls. There were no differences between right ventricular (RV) RVEDVi (81.3 vs. 72.5 ml/m2, p=0.2382), RVESVi (32.7 vs. 29.1, p=0.6816) and RVEF (61 vs. 59 %, p=0.4407) in the acromegaly group and controls. At one year, patients with acromegaly demonstrated a significant fall in IGF with treatment (with somatostatin analogues or transphenoidal surgery) from baseline median IGF-I SDS +10.58 (range 1.19 to 6.52) to +0.40 (range -1.93 to 3.02) at one year (p=0.0042). CMR parameters of the LV did not change after 1 year of therapy: LVMi 65.7 vs. 61.0 g/m2, p=0.0547; EDVi 89.5 vs. 85.8 ml/m2, p=0.1641; ESVi 33.7 vs. 30.1 ml/m2, p=0.6523; EF 60 vs. 66 %, p=0.7792; CI 3.7 vs. 3.4 l/min/m2, p=0.4961.