Address of Correspondence:
Samir K Saha. MD, PhD, FACC, FESC
Consultant Cardiologist,
Acudoc Cardiac Imaging Laboratory
Stockholm,
Sweden.
E mail: samirksaha@gmail.com
Phone: + 46 7351351756
X: @samirsaha
WhatsApp +46761001303
“Spacetime tells matter how to move; matter tells spacetime how to curve”.
John Wheller, an American theoretical physicist explaining Einstein´s general theory of relativity.
Abstract :
Strain imaging as a tool to engage in unravelling the secrets of cardiac motion in health and disease has opened a new horizon in the field of clinical cardiology beyond the standard algorithm for quantification of left ventricular function and dysfunction. As such, the wider application of strain can probably be compared with the ubiquitous application of the incretin molecule, glucagon like peptide 1 receptor agonist (GLP 1RA) first applied to manage type 2 diabetes, that is now indicated in many different conditions like obesity, heart failure, and Alzheimer’s disease! This commentary would focus on the role of automated strain imaging in heart failure, aortic stenosis, cardiac amyloidosis, atrial fibrillation, left atrial, and right ventricular strain, on a 2-dimensional domain of spacetime navigated, to some extent, by AI. This commentary thus argues that automated strain imaging is becoming an essential tool for comprehensive cardiac assessment across various conditions.
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Only about a few decades ago coronary artery disease (CAD) was the prime focus of cardiovascular research. Limitations in detection methods led to the exploration of new tools like tissue Doppler imaging (TDI). The European MYDISE data confirmed the potential of TDI in enhancing detection 1, as did those from Australia2. The investigators have shown that application of the velocity of left ventricular motion enhances the sensitivity and specificity of dobutamine stress echocardiography for detection of coronary artery disease, non-invasively.
In the review published in this issue of the journal by Gherbesia E et al 3 the authors have shown that the 2D speckle tracking strain imaging, built upon the foundation of TDI, is now a reliable tool for assessment and management of various cardiac conditions beyond CAD.