Dobutamine stress testing for the evaluation of atrial and diastolic ventricular function in Fontan patients.

Objective: To assess the atrial and ventricular diastolic function response to dobutamine stress in Fontan patients, and to relate these measurements to exercise capacity and events during the follow-up.

Methods: We performed a secondary analysis of a cross-sectional multicentre study of Fontan patients with intra-atrial lateral tunnel (ILT) or extracardiac conduit (ECC) modification. Subjects underwent cardiac MRI during rest and low-dose dobutamine stress, and cardiopulmonary exercise testing.

Longitudinal Myocardial Deformation Does Not Predict Single Ventricle Ejection Fraction Assessed by Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Children with a Total Cavopulmonary Connection.

Survival of children with single ventricle heart defects after the total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) has improved, but impaired cardiac function remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (cMRI) is the gold standard in assessing single ventricle volume and function, but high costs and limited availability hamper its routine use. A cheaper and more available alternative is echocardiography.

Distribution of strain patterns in children with dilated cardiomyopathy.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the predicting value of quantitative and qualitative dyssynchrony parameters as assessed by two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) on outcome in children with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Furthermore, the reproducibility of these parameters was investigated.

Background: In previous studies in adults with heart failure, several dyssynchrony parameters have been shown to be a valuable predictor of clinical outcome.

Parent reports of health-related quality of life and heart failure severity score independently predict outcome in children with dilated cardiomyopathy.

Background: Dilated cardiomyopathy in children causes heart failure and has a poor prognosis. Health-related quality of life in this patient group is unknown. Moreover, results may provide detailed information of parents' sense of their child's functioning.