PMID: 12784777Jun 6, 2003Paper

Left ventricular diastolic function in pregnancy-induced hypertension

Italian Heart Journal : Official Journal of the Italian Federation of Cardiology
Fabio De ContiPiergiuseppe Piovesana

Abstract

Hypertension occurs in some 10% of pregnancies and its effects on the left ventricular (LV) morphology and systolic function have been well elucidated. Little is known, however, about the changes in LV diastolic function in such a condition. The aim of this study was to evaluate the LV diastolic function in women with pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) using new Doppler echocardiographic methods. Twenty-two women with PIH (mean age 31.0 +/- 4.1 years) were examined during the third trimester of pregnancy. Other 15 normotensive pregnant women (mean age 31.8 +/- 5.7 years, p = NS) were used as controls. Doppler parameters of diastolic function included: mitral inflow variables, pulmonary venous flow (PVF) variables, M-mode color Doppler of LV inflow and pulsed tissue Doppler of the mitral annulus. Furthermore, patients underwent an echocardiographic evaluation immediately after delivery and 1 month later. PIH women showed an increased E/A ratio and an increase in the diastolic forward components of PVF. The ratio of systolic to diastolic time-velocity integral and the systolic fraction of time-velocity integrals subsequently decreased. Women with PIH also presented a significantly increased velocity of reversal PVF at atrial co...Continue Reading

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