noncompaction of the ventricular myocardium is an embryonic cardiomyopathy that is increasingly being recognized. noncompaction of lv myocardium, right ventricular myocardium, or both can occur in isolation, in congenital heart diseases, in valvular heart diseases, in neuromuscular disorders, skeletal abnormalities and in endocrinologic abnormalities. clinical manifestations of ventricular non-...

OBJECTIVES This study evaluated normotensive diabetic patients' blood pressure response to graded exercise and their echocardiographic pattern of left ventricular geometry. METHODS A descriptive, cross-sectional, hospital-based study was carried out on 30 normotensive type 2 diabetic patients and 34 controls, aged 30 to 60 years. The outcome measures were to determine the exercise-related var...

BACKGROUND Elevated left ventricular mass index (LVMI) and concentric left ventricular (LV) remodeling are related to adverse cardiovascular disease (CVD) events. The predictive utility of LV concentric remodeling and LV mass in the prediction of CVD events is not well characterized. METHODS AND RESULTS Framingham Heart Study Offspring Cohort members without prevalent CVD (n=1715, 50% men, ag...

Left bundle branch block (LBBB) is an electrophysiological abnormality that can have profound acute and chronic hemodynamic effects. Intermittent LBBB has been noted to occur with accelerations in heart rate, typically during exercise (known as rate-dependent LBBB). This has been associated with acute deteriorations in cardiac systolic function through the development of left ventricular (LV) d...

OBJECTIVES This study aimed to characterize the difference between renin angiotensin system (RAS)-dependent and RAS-independent hypertrophy and their differential contribution to the transition to heart failure. BACKGROUND Hypertensive left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy develops with RAS activation in the heart; however, LV hypertrophy develops even without RAS activation. METHODS Left ventr...

BACKGROUND Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is an independent cardiac risk factor in hypertensives and the structural classification of left ventricular (LV) geometry provides additional prognostic information. Ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitoring has been shown to be superior to office blood pressure (BP) in relation to hypertension LVH. We investigated ambulatory BP variables in relat...

Background Right ventricular (RV) function holds important prognostic value in both rightand left-sided acquired and congenital heart diseases. However, assessment of RV function remains challenging due to its complex chamber geometry and physiology. 4D flow CMR permits assessment of multidimensional intraventricular flow. We hypothesized that 4D flow specific markers of RV function can detect ...

While it has long been recognized that bi-directional interaction between the heart and the vasculature plays a critical role in the proper functioning of the cardiovascular system, a comprehensive study of this interaction has largely been hampered by a lack of modeling framework capable of simultaneously accommodating high-resolution models of the heart and vasculature. Here, we address this ...

Echocardiographic and hemodynamic studies were obtained in 42 consecutive patients undergoing aortic valve replacement for isolated aortic stenosis. Concentric left ventricular (LV) wall thickening, the most common preoperative abnormality, occurred in 95% of patients. LV dilation with reduced fractional shortening was noted in approximately 25% of patients but was severe in only one patient. S...

BACKGROUND Several biological pathways are activated concomitantly during left ventricular (LV) remodeling. However, the relative contribution of circulating biomarkers representing these distinct pathways to LV geometry is unclear. METHODS AND RESULTS We evaluated 2119 Framingham Offspring Study participants (mean age, 57 years; 57% women) who underwent measurements of biomarkers of inflamma...