Assessment of left ventricular myocardial deformation by cardiac MRI strain imaging reveals myocardial dysfunction in patients with primary cardiac tumors.

Background To assess left ventricular myocardial deformation in patients with primary cardiac tumors. Methods MRI was retrospectively performed in 61 patients, including 31 patients with primary cardiac tumors and 30 matched normal controls. Left ventricular strain and function parameters were then assessed by MRI-tissue tracking. Differences between the tumor group and controls, left and right heart tumor groups, left ventricular wall tumor and non-left ventricular wall tumor groups, and tumors with and without LV enlargement groups were assessed. Finally, the correlations among tumor diameter, myocardial strain, and LV function were analyzed. Results Left ventricular myocardial strain was milder for tumor group than for normal group. Peak circumferential strain (PCS) and its diastolic strain rate, longitudinal strains (PLS) and its diastolic strain rates, and peak radial systolic and diastolic velocities of the right heart tumor group were lower than those of the left heart tumor group (all p < 0.050), but the peak radial systolic strain rate of the former was higher than that of the latter ( p = 0.017). The corresponding strains were lower in the left ventricular wall tumor groups than in the non-left ventricular wall tumor group ( p < 0.050). Peak radial systolic velocities were generally higher for tumors with LV enlargement than for tumors without LV enlargement (p < 0.050). Peak radial strain, PCS, and PLS showed important correlations with the left ventricular ejection fraction (all p < 0.050). Conclusion MRI-tissue tracking is capable of quantitatively assessing left ventricular myocardial strain to reveal sub-clinical abnormalities of myocardial contractile function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]