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Right ventricular outflow tract function in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Funktion des rechtsventrikulären Ausflusstrakts bei chronisch obstruktiver Lungenerkrankung

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Abstract

Background

It is clinically important to evaluate the severity of right ventricular (RV) overload in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which is often associated with changes in the structure and the function of the right ventricle. Noninvasive and reliable assessment of RV function would be an essential determinant of RV load and a clinically useful factor for assessing cardiovascular risk in COPD patients.

Objective

The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical application value of right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) systolic function measured by transthoracic echocardiography in patients with COPD.

Patients and methods

We prospectively investigated COPD male patients and compared them with healthy controls. In addition to RV conventional echocardiographic parameters, RVOT size and fractional shortening (RVOT-FS) parameters were also assessed.

Results

Fifty-five COPD patients (all men; mean age, 62 ± 9 years) participated in the study, and were compared with a control group consisting of 21male, healthy, nonsmoking subjects with a mean age of 58 ± 11 years. The RVOT-FS was impaired in COPD patients than healthy controls (27.8 ± 15.5 vs. 57.5 ± 8.6, p < 0.001), and was correlated positively with tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE; r = 0.583, p < 0.001) and pulmonary acceleration time (r = 0.666, p < 0.001) and inversely with pulmonary artery systolic pressure (r = 0.605, p < 0.001) and functional capacity(r = − 0.589, p < 0.001). There was a statistically significant difference in RVOT-FS among the COPD subgroups with regard to New York Heart Association functional classification (p < 0.001).

Conclusion

The RVOT-FS is a noninvasive easily applicable measure of RV systolic function and is well correlated with functional capacity in COPD patients. Its combination with long-axis measurements via TAPSE and transtricuspid Doppler analysis may provide a comprehensive evaluation of the RV performance in COPD patients.

Zusammenfassung

Hintergrund

Klinisch ist es wichtig, den Schweregrad der rechtsventrikulären (RV-)Belastung bei Patienten mit chronisch obstruktiver Lungenerkrankung (COPD) zu bestimmen, der oft mit Veränderungen der RV-Struktur und -Funktion einhergeht. Eine nichtinvasive und verlässliche Messung der RV-Funktion wäre ein essenzieller Parameter der RV-Belastung und von klinischem Nutzen zur Bestimmung des kardiovaskulären Risikos bei COPD-Patienten.

Ziel

Ziel der vorliegenden Studie war zu untersuchen, welche klinische Bedeutung die systolische Funktion des RV-Ausflusstrakts (RVOT) bei Messung mittels transthorakaler Echokardiographie für Patienten mit COPD hat.

Methoden

Prospektiv wurden männliche COPD-Patienten untersucht und mit gesunden Kontrollen verglichen. Zusätzlich zu den herkömmlichen echokardiographischen RV-Parametern wurden RVOT-Größe und -Parameter der fraktionellen Verkürzung (RVOT-FS) bestimmt.

Ergebnisse

Es nahmen 55 COPD-Patienten (alle männlich, Durchschnittsalter: 62 ± 9 Jahre) an der Studie teil und wurden mit einer Kontrollgruppe aus 21 männlichen, gesunden Nichtrauchern mit einem Durchschnittsalter von 58 ± 11 Jahren verglichen. Die RVOT-FS war bei COPD-Patienten mehr beeinträchtigt als bei gesunden Kontrollen (27,8 ± 15,5 vs. 57,5 ± 8,6; p < 0,001) und war positiv mit der systolischen Exkursion der Trikuspidalringebene (TAPSE; r = 0,583; p < 0,001) und der pulmonalen Beschleunigungszeit (r = 0,666; p < 0,001) korreliert sowie invers mit dem systolischen Pulmonalarteriendruck (r = 0,605; p < 0,001) und der funktionellen Kapazität (r = − 0,589; p < 0,001). Es bestand ein statistisch signifikanter Unterschied hinsichtlich der RVOT-FS unter den COPD-Subgruppen in Bezug auf die funktionelle Klassifikation gemäß New York Heart Association (p < 0,001).

Schlussfolgerung

Die RVOT-FS ist ein nichtinvasiver, leicht anwendbarer Parameter der systolischen RV-Funktion und gut mit der funktionellen Kapazität bei COPD-Patienten korreliert. Ihre Kombination mit der Längsachsenmessung via TAPSE und der transtrikuspidalen Doppleruntersuchung könnte eine umfassende Bewertung der RV-Leistungsfähigkeit bei COPD-Patienten erlauben.

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Compliance with ethical guidelines

Conflict of interest. B. Geyik, N. Tarakci, O. Ozeke, C. Ertan, M. Gul, S. Topaloglu, D. Aras, A.D. Demir, O. Tufekcioglu, Z. Golbasi, and S. Aydogdu state that there are no conflicts of interest. All studies on humans described in the present manuscript were carried out with the approval of the responsible ethics committee and in accordance with national law and the Helsinki Declaration of 1975 (in its current, revised form). Informed consent was obtained from all patients included in studies.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cardiology, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey

    B. Geyik

  2. Department of Chest Disease, Acibadem University, Eskisehir, Turkey

    N. Tarakci

  3. Department of Cardiology, Turkiye Yuksek Ihtisas Hospital, Kardiyoloji Klinigi, 26100, Ankara, Turkey

    O. Ozeke MD, M. Gul, S. Topaloglu, D. Aras, O. Tufekcioglu, Z. Golbasi & S. Aydogdu

  4. Department of Cardiology, Acibadem University, Eskisehir, Turkey

    C. Ertan & A.D. Demir

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  1. B. Geyik
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to O. Ozeke MD.

Additional information

Additional material onlineThis article includes two additional videos. You will find this supplemental at dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00059-013-3978-9. The abstract section of this study was presented at the 29th Annual Congress of the Turkish Society of Cardiology (26–29 October 2013, Antalya, Turkey).

Electronic supplementary material

59_2013_3978_MO1_ESM.avi

Video 1. Modified subcostal short-axis view showing three distinct part of the right ventricle as the “inflow”, “trabeculated apical” and “outflow tract” compartments (AVI 3,14MB)

Video 2. Parasternal short-axis view at the level of the aortic root showing the right ventricular outflow tract contractile function (AVI 10,8MB)

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Geyik, B., Tarakci, N., Ozeke, O. et al. Right ventricular outflow tract function in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Herz 40, 624–628 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00059-013-3978-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00059-013-3978-9

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