2D speckle-tracking echocardiography as a prognostic imaging modality for COVID-19 adverse outcomes.

ABSTRACT

Aim: 2D speckle-tracking echocardiography (2D-STE) has been used to assess cardiac recovery during the COVID-19 patient follow-ups within the pandemic. The novel role of STE in predicting adverse outcomes of COVID-19 has received attention due to its high sensitivity in identifying subclinical myocardial dysfunction. We reviewed the studies on using 2D-STE to assess COVID-19 prognosis. Methods: a literature search was conducted on PubMed and Scopus for eligible articles, 24 of which discussed using prognostic 2D-STE for COVID-19 patients. Results: 2D-STE predicts cardiovascular impairments more rapidly and precisely than conventional echocardiography. The 2D-STE technique presents an independent prognostic factor in COVID-19 infection. Conclusion: 2D-STE could be considered a time-efficient and accurate risk predictor of all-cause mortality in COVID-19 patients.

In this review, we have gathered every article that discusses the association between COVID-19 prognosis and speckle-tracking echocardiography, which is a novel, fast and accurate method and does not need expert operators to perform. We have shown that according to the current literature, we can use this imaging technique on the right and left heart ventricles to estimate the prognosis of the patients infected with COVID-19.