BACKGROUND Regular physical activity reduces cardiovascular risk. There is concern that Marathon running might acutely damage the heart. It is unknown to what extent intensive physical endurance activity influences the cardiac mechanics at resting condition. METHODS Eighty-four amateur marathon runners (43 women and 41 men) from Berlin-Brandenburg area who had completed at least one marathon ...

BACKGROUND Two-dimensional strain echocardiography (2D-SE) calculates tissue velocities via frame-to-frame tracking of unique acoustic markers within the image and provides strain parameters in two dimensions. Novel 2D-SE software allows semi-automated strain measurements and increased averaging capabilities optimizing signal-noise ratio. AIM We tested whether 2D-SE and the currently used and...

left atrial (la) distension has been demonstrated to be linked with aortic stiffness in different patient populations. three-dimensional (3d) speckle-tracking echocardiography (ste) seems to be a promising tool for volumetric and functional evaluation of the la. the aim of the present study was to determine whether correlations exist between 3dste-derived la volume-based and strain parameter...

In this work, dynamic mechanical properties of three high-manganese steels with TRIP/TWIP or fully TWIP characteristics are studied. High strain rate experiments in the range of true strain rates between ~500 and 1800 /s are conducted using a dynamic torsional testing setup. All the three steels show a positive strain rate sensitivity in the intermediate range of strain rates (up to 500 /s). Bu...

OBJECTIVE This study assessed the early changes in regional and global systolic and diastolic myocardial functions in patients with familial Mediterranean fever without any cardiovascular symptoms using tissue Doppler and strain and strain rate echocardiography and compared them to the results of a control group. METHODS This study has a cross-sectional and observational design. FMF patients ...

Segmental contractility can be assessed quantitatively by analyzing deformation, or strain, and the rate of deformation, or the strain rate. This type of analysis can be performed using either tissue Doppler imaging or, more recently, two-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography. The aim of this study was to determine typical parameter values in healthy subjects and their reproducibility. ...