Effect of hemodialysis on left atrial function in patients with end-stage renal failure evaluated by two-dimensional speckle tracking imaging.

OBJECTIVE: We sought to evaluate the left atrial (LA) strain parameters of maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients before and after dialysis by two dimensional speckle tracking imaging (2D-STI), and to explore the effect of volume load change on LA function. METHODS: Seventy-six patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) on hemodialysis (HD) were enrolled in the study protocol. The median duration of dialysis was 24.0 (7.5, 59.5) months. In addition, 30 healthy subjects were selected as control group. Comprehensive echocardiography was performed immediately before and after hemodialysis to compare the changes in left atrial function. RESULTS: Regarding LA strain parameters in patients of pre-HD, the median (25th, 75th) LA reservoir, LA conduit, and LA contractile reserve were 28.0 (23.0, 34.5), -15.5 (-10.0, -21.5), -12.0 (-9.0, -16.0) respectively; the post-HD were 26.0 (21.0, 29.0), -12.0 (-9, -15.5), -12.5 (-9, -15.5) respectively; and controls were 43.0 (36.0, 48.0), -24.0 (-18.0, -32.0), -17.0 (-15.0, -22.0) respectively. The left atrial strain parameters before HD were lower than controls, the differences were statistically significant, the p-value were .000, .025, and .000, respectively. The reservoir function and conduit function of LA strain decreased after hemodialysis, the differences were statistically significant, the p-value were .003 and .006, respectively. Regarding the contraction of LA, the differences between pre- and post-HD were not statistically significant (p = .965). CONCLUSION: Hemodialysis removes excess water in human body, while LVGLS and Doppler parameters are greatly affected by reduced preload. New echocardiographic parameters, such as left atrial strain, can quantitatively evaluate the changes in left atrial function before and after hemodialysis in ESRD patients, which can provide valuable information for the overall cardiac evaluation in this specific population.

Acute cardiac complications and subclinical myocardial injuries associated with pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma.

BACKGROUND: Catecholamine excess arising from pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas (PPGLs) can cause a wide spectrum of cardiac manifestations, including acute cardiac complications (ACCs) and subclinical myocardial injuries (SMIs). In this study, we aimed to conduct a comprehensive analysis of ACCs and SMIs in a large cohort of patients with PPGLs. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of consecutive patients with PPGLs admitted between January 2013 and July 2020 (n = 189). The prevalence of ACCs and SMIs and characteristics of patients identified with ACCs and SMIs were investigated. Moreover, comparisons were performed between patients with and without ACCs. RESULTS: Fourteen patients (7.4%) fulfilled the criteria for ACCs, including nine (4.8%) who presented with Takotsubo-like cardiomyopathy, four (2.1%) with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, and finally one (0.5%) with catecholamine-induced cardiomyopathy. Compared to those without ACCs (n = 175), patients with ACCs had a higher prevalence of epinephrine-producing PPGLs (81.8% vs 33.9%, P = 0.006) and were more likely to show invasive behavior (61.5% vs 27.3%, P = 0.022) or hemorrhage/necrosis (53.9% vs 17.4%, P = 0.005) on histology. The apical sparing pattern (5/7, 71.4%) was the dominant impairment pattern of longitudinal strain (LS) for patients displaying Takotsubo-like cardiomyopathy. In patients without cardiac symptoms, a fairly high proportion (21/77, 27.3%) of patients who underwent screening for troponin and/or natriuretic peptide and/or echocardiography had SMIs. CONCLUSIONS: One in every fourteen PPGL patients presented with ACCs, and in the patients with Takotsubo-like cardiomyopathy, the apical sparing pattern was the primary impairment pattern of LS. Additionally, nearly one-third of patients without symptoms had SMIs. The diagnosis of PPGLs should be considered in patients with acute reversible cardiomyopathy, especially in those exhibiting an apical sparing pattern of LS.