Optimising assessments with echocardiography
- Echocardiography is a key diagnostic tool for:2
- Confirming the diagnosis and severity of AS
- Assessing valve calcification, left-ventricle (LV) function and wall thickness
- Detecting other valve disease or aortic pathology
- Providing prognostic information
- Current international recommendations for the echocardiographic evaluation of patients with AS rely upon measurement of mean pressure gradient (the most robust parameter), peak transvalvular velocity (Vmax) and valve area2
- Both the EACVI and ESC/EACTS VHD guidelines recommend a stepwise approach to assessing AS severity using echocardiography:2,5
* High flow may be reversible in patients with anaemia, hyperthyroidism or arterio-venous fistulae, and may also be present in patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy. Upper limit of normal flow using pulsed Doppler echocardiography: cardiac index 4.1 L/min/m2 in men and women, stroke volume index (SVi) 54 mL/m2 in men, 51 mL/m2 in women).
† Consider also: typical symptoms (with no other explanation), LV hypertrophy (in the absence of coexistent hypertension) or reduced LV longitudinal function (with no other cause).
‡ DSE flow reserve= >20% increase in stroke volume in response to low-dose dobutamine.
§ Pseudo-severe aortic stenosis= AVA >1.0 cm2 with increased flow.
¶ Thresholds for severe aortic stenosis assessed by means of CT measurement of aortic valve calcification (Agatston units): men >3000, women >1600= highly likely; men >2000, women >1200= likely; men <1600, women <800= unlikely.
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References
* Adverse features according to clinical, imaging (echocardiography or CT scanning) and/or assessment of biomarkers.6
† A positive result following exercise testing is the development of symptoms or a sustained blood pressure fall below the patient’s baseline.6
- 1Otto CM. Heart 2000;84:211–218.
- 2Vahanian A, et al. Eur Heart J. 2021; ehab395.doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ ehab395.
- 3Raddatz MA, et al. Open Heart 2020;7:e001331.
- 4Delgado V, et al. J Am Coll Cardiol Img. 2019;12:267–282.
- 5Baumgartner H, et al. Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging 2017;18(3):254-275.
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