Right ventricular contractility as a potential independent evaluation parameter in pulmonary hypertension.

Background: Pulmonary artery hypertension (PAH) is a common disease with high disability and mortality rates, and can lead to right heart failure. We aimed to evaluate the capability of right ventricular pressure-volume coupling parameters, end-systolic elastance (Ees), right ventricular afterload (Ea), and arterial elastance (Ees/Ea) for assessing right ventricular performance during the chronic development of PAH.

Methods: Thirty-six PAH patients were enrolled in this study. We reported the cutoff values of the right ventricular pressure-volume coupling parameters in the progression of PAH and their relations with other pressure-volume loop measurements in both the right and left ventricles.

Results: Ees and normalised Ees (Ees/Ea) calculated from the pressure method performed better than ones from the volume method in correlation with mean pulmonary arterial pressure and mean right arterial pressure. The cutoff sets of Ees and Ees/Ea were capable of grouping pulmonary hypertension patients which were well supported by their significant correlation with several key right ventricular hemodynamic parameters. Additionally, the normalised Ees was able to reflect the changes in left ventricular function during the deterioration of PAH.

Conclusion: Ees and Ees/Ea are promising independent reference parameters for assessing ventricular function in progressing PAH patients.