Systemic sclerosis patients exhibited increased left ventricular wall thickness, mass index (p<0.005), and wall thickness/cavity dimension ratio (p<0.0005) compared to matched controls.
Does systemic sclerosis alter cardiac morphology, left ventricular volume, and mass compared to matched controls?
Patients with systemic sclerosis exhibit increased left ventricular wall thickness and relative mass independent of systemic hypertension, suggesting secondary myocardial fibrosis.
Absolute Event Rate: 0% vs 0%
The present study was performed in order to evaluate, by two-dimensional echocardiography, cardiac morphology in terms of chamber dimensions, as well as left ventricular (LV) volume and mass, in patients with systemic sclerosis (n = 30). Measurements were compared with those from age- and sex-matched controls (n = 48). The most prominent finding in patients was increased LV wall thickness. There was also a tendency in patients to have reduced LV cavity dimensions. Thus, interventricular septum (p < 0.0005), LV posterior wall (p < 0.05) and the wall thickness/cavity dimension ratio (p < 0.0005) were increased in patients compared to controls, as was LV mass index (p < 0.005). The stroke volume (p < 0.005), end-diastolic volume (p < 0.01) as well as end-diastolic volume index (p < 0.05) were decreased in the patient group, but not when body surface area was considered. Blood pressure, ejection fraction and end-systolic wall stress were similar in the two groups. We conclude that our patients with systemic sclerosis had a nondilated LV cavity, with an increased wall thickness and relative LV mass. LV hypertrophy was not explained by systemic hypertension and may therefore be secondary to myocardial fibrosis.
Kazzam et al. (Fri,) reported a other. Systemic sclerosis patients exhibited increased left ventricular wall thickness, mass index (p<0.005), and wall thickness/cavity dimension ratio (p<0.0005) compared to matched controls.