Evaluation of left ventricular rotation and twist by speckle tracking echocardiography in heart transplant recipients

Objective To evaluate the left ventricular rotation and twist in the cardiac allograft by speckle tracking echocardiography.Methods Twenty-six heart transplant recipients underwent echocardiographic studies at 1st,3rd,6th and 12th month after heart transplantation.Twenty-six healthy subjects served as controls.Parasternal basal and apical short-axis images of left ventricle were recorded and then were analyzed using EchoPAC software.The curves of basal and apical rotation and left ventricular twist were obtained,Peak values of basal and apical rotation and left ventricular twist were measured and then statistically analyzed.Results There were no significant differences in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and fractional shortening (LVFS) between heart transplant recipients and controls (P ＞0.05).The left ventricular twist,apical rotation were significantly lower in heart transplant recipients at 1 st,3rd,6th and 12th month after surgery than those in controls (P ＜0.05) ;while basal rotation in heart transplant recipients had no significant difference when compared with controls (P ＞0.05).The left ventricular twist,apical and basal rotation in heart transplant recipients among 1 st,3rd,6th and 12th month after surgery had no significant difference (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions Although the LVEF and LVFS of cardiac allograft seemed "normal",the left ventricular twist,apical rotation were still significantly lower in heart transplant recipients than those in controls.Speckle tracking echocardiography can be used for accurate assessment of left ventricular twist in heart transplant recipients. Key words: Echocardiography;  Heart transplantation;  Ventricular function, left;  Speckle tracking imaging