Left Ventricle Tissue Doppler Imaging Predicts Disease Severity in Septic Patients Newly Admitted in an Emergency Unit.

Background: Assessment of sepsis severity is challenging. Available scoring systems require laboratory data. Therefore, a rapid tool would be useful.

Objective: To determine the role of mitral valve tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) as a prognostic tool in septic patients.

Methods: For this prospective cohort, newly admitted septic patients received TDI measurements of s wave (s), e' wave (e'), and E/e' ratio (E/e') within 5 min of resuscitation. Results were compared with sepsis severity measured by Mortality in Emergency Department Sepsis (MEDS), Simplified Acute Physiology Score (SAPS) 3, and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA).

Results: Over 3 months, 63 patients were enrolled. TDI parameters correlated with MEDS, SAPS 3, and SOFA (r = -0.53, r = -0.55, r = -0.36, respectively, for s, p < 0.005; r = -0.56, r = -0.49, r = -0.40, respectively, for e', p < 0.005; and r = 0.56; r = 0.48; r = 0.46, respectively, for E/e', p < 0.005). Mean s and e' decreased among sepsis, severe sepsis, and septic shock patients (14.2; 12.05; 10.14 cm/s, respectively, for s, p = 0.0048 and 18.28; 15.14; 12.12 cm/s, respectively, for e', p = 0.003), whereas mean E/e' increased among sepsis stages (4.76; 6.51; and 8.14, respectively, p = 0.001). Mean s and e' were higher in survivors (13.25 vs. 7.33 cm/s, for s, p < 0.0001; and 16.4 vs. 9 cm/s for e', p = 0.0025); mean E/e' was higher in nonsurvivors (10.85 vs. 5.63, p < 0.0001). On univariate analysis, odds ratios (ORs) for death related to s, e', and E/e' were, respectively, 0.517 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.344-0.775), 0.60 (95% CI 0.433-0.833), and 1.953 (95% CI 1.256-3.008); p < 0.05 for all. Multiple logistic analysis showed an OR of 1.737 (95% CI 1.037-2.907, p = 0.035) for death related to E/e'.

Conclusion: TDI may be useful to assess disease severity and prognosis in newly diagnosed septic patients.