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Elasticity of the Heart, Problems and Potentials

  • Cardiac Magnetic Resonance (E Nagel and V Puntmann, Section Editors)
  • Published:
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Abstract

The biomechanical integrity of the human heart is critically important, with various diseases affecting the active or passive stiffness of the myocardium. Although manual palpation is an integral part of many diagnostic procedures and is of undisputed clinical value, its applicability is limited to superficial regions. Furthermore, it remains a qualitative not quantitative method. These limits, however, may be overcome with elastography, an exciting new imaging modality that enables noninvasive assessment of biomechanical properties deep inside the body. The general concept is based on the intertwined relationship between the local propagation properties of shear waves and the underlying, intrinsic mechanical shear parameters. Elasticity imaging already has demonstrated very promising results in breast cancer, liver fibrosis staging, and neurodegenerative diseases. However, its application to the cardiovascular system is rather novel, and its challenges include data acquisition and mechanical parameter reconstruction. This article discusses the requirements for performing quantitative elastography of the heart, as well as current developments and future perspectives.

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Ralph Sinkus declares that he has no conflict of interest.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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  1. BHF Centre of Excellence, Division of Imaging Sciences and Biomedical Engineering, King’s College London, King’s Health Partners, St. Thomas’ Hospital, London, SE1 7EH, UK

    Ralph Sinkus

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Sinkus, R. Elasticity of the Heart, Problems and Potentials. Curr Cardiovasc Imaging Rep 7, 9288 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12410-014-9288-7

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