Ventricular-arterial coupling, remodeling, and prognosis in chronic heart failure

Bonnie Ky, Benjamin French, Abigail May Khan, Ted Plappert, Andrew Wang, Julio A. Chirinos, James C. Fang, Nancy K. Sweitzer, Barry A. Borlaug, David A. Kass, Martin St. John Sutton, Thomas P. Cappola

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

180 Scopus citations

Abstract

Objectives The objective of this study was to compare the physiological determinants of ejection fraction (EF) - ventricular size, contractile function, and ventricular-arterial (VA) interaction - and their associations with clinical outcomes in chronic heart failure (HF). Background EF is a potent predictor of HF outcomes, but represents a complex summary measure that integrates several components including left ventricular size, contractile function, and VA coupling. The relative importance of each of these parameters in determining prognosis is unknown. Methods In 466 participants with chronic systolic HF, we derived quantitative echocardiographic measures of EF: cardiac size (end-diastolic volume [EDV]); contractile function (the end-systolic pressure volume relationship slope [Eessb] and intercept [V 0]); and VA coupling (arterial elastance [Ea]/Eessb). We determined the association between these parameters and the following adverse outcomes: 1) the combined endpoint of death, cardiac transplantation, or ventricular assist device (VAD) placement; and 2) cardiac hospitalization. Results Over a median follow-up of 3.4 years, there were 76 deaths, 52 transplantations, 14 VAD placements, and 684 cardiac hospitalizations. EF was independently associated with death, transplantation, and VAD placement (adjusted hazard ratio [HR]: 3.0; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.8 to 5.0 comparing third and first tertiles), as were EDV (HR: 2.6; 95% CI: 1.5 to 4.2); V0 (HR: 3.6; 95% CI: 2.1 to 6.1); and Ea/Eessb (HR: 2.1; 95% CI: 1.3 to 3.3). EDV, V0, and Ea/Eessb were also associated with risk of cardiac hospitalization. Eessb was not significantly associated with any adverse outcomes in adjusted analyses. Conclusions Left ventricular size, V0, and VA coupling are associated with prognosis in systolic HF, but end-systolic elastance (Eessb) is not. Assessment of VA coupling via Ea/Eessb is an additional noninvasively derived metric that can be used to gauge prognosis in human HF.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1165-1172
Number of pages8
JournalJournal of the American College of Cardiology
Volume62
Issue number13
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 24 2013
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • ejection fraction
  • heart failure
  • mechanics

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Ventricular-arterial coupling, remodeling, and prognosis in chronic heart failure'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this