[Evaluation of left ventricular function by systolic time intervals].

Background: Evaluation of left ventricular systolic function, usually based on the assessment of the ejection fraction, is increasingly supplemented by other more sophisticated techniques such as 3D echocardiography and speckle tracking. However these methods require a high technicity and a good echogenicity. As heart failure leads to lengthening of aortic pre-ejectional time (PET) and shortening of left ventricular ejection time (ET), systolic time intervals (STI) were proposed for the evaluation of systolic myocardial performance.