AIMS To study left ventricular mechanics of exercise with Doppler and tissue Doppler. METHODS AND RESULTS Twenty-one males (mean age, 26; height, 184 cm; weight, 84 kg), exercised on a bicycle, with increasing workload, with oxygen uptake, Doppler flow and tissue Doppler recordings during exercise. There was correlation between peak systolic LVOT flow and annulus velocity; R=0.72, (p<0.001) a...

Background Degenerative Mitral Valve Regurgitation (DMR) is a severe form of mitral valve disease for which the survival rate is poor if left untreated. Defining the optimal timing for surgery is challenging in spite of advances in diagnostic imaging. No sensitive measure of left ventricular dysfunction from CMR have yet been reported since the ejection fraction (EF) is usually preserved in DMR...

In seven chronically instrumented conscious dogs, micromanometers measured left ventricular pressure, and ultrasonic dimension transducers measured left ventricular minor-axis diameter; the latter recording was filtered to examine data between 20 and 100 Hz. Acceptable external heart sounds were recorded with a phonocardiographic microphone in four of the seven dogs. With each dog sedated, intu...

BACKGROUND Attenuated increases in ventricular stroke volume during exercise are common in type 2 diabetes and contribute to reduced aerobic capacity. The purpose of this study was to determine whether impaired ventricular filling or reduced systolic ejection were responsible for the attenuated stroke volume reserve in people with uncomplicated type 2 diabetes. METHODS Peak aerobic capacity a...

The Starling relationship in the normal human ventricle may be different than usually portrayed. In normal, resting, supine man the ventricular function curve is at its peak at a left ventricular end-diastolic pressure of approximately 10 mm Hg. Below this point is a strong direct relation between filling pressure and stroke work, while at higher filling pressures, a plateau occurs. Limitation ...

AIMS To investigate whether a low heart rate is necessary to maintain improvement in myocardial function after long-term treatment with a beta-blocker in patients with heart failure. METHODS AND RESULTS Forty-eight patients with congestive heart failure were investigated: 30 patients with dilated cardiomyopathy participating in a placebo-controlled trial (15 on placebo, 15 on metoprolol), and...