Measurements of changes in left ventricular volume, strain, and twist during isovolumic relaxation using MRI

Left ventricular (LV) active relaxation begins before aortic valve closure and is largely completed during isovolumic relaxation (IVR), before mitral valve opening. During IVR, despite closed mitral and aortic valves, indirect assessments of LV volume have suggested volume increases during this period. The aim of this study is to measure LV volume throughout IVR and to determine the sources of any volume changes. For 10 healthy individuals (26.0 + or - 3.8 yr), magnetic resonance imaging was used to measure time courses of LV volume, principal myocardial strains (circumferential, longitudinal, radial), and LV twist. Mitral leaflet motion was observed using echocardiography. During IVR, LV volume measurements showed an apparent increase of 4.6 + or - 1.5 ml (5.0 + or - 2.0% of the early filling volume change), the LV untwisted by 4.5 + or - 1.9 degrees (36.6 + or - 18.0% of peak systolic twist), and changes in circumferential, longitudinal, and radial strains were +0.87 + or - 0.64%, +0.93 + or - 0.57%, and -1.46 + or - 1.66% (4.2 + or - 3.3%, 5.9 + or - 3.3%, and 5.3 + or - 7.5% of peak systolic strains), respectively. The apparent changes in volume correlated (P < 0.01) with changes in circumferential, longitudinal, and radial strains (r = 0.86, 0.69, and -0.37, respectively) and untwisting (r = 0.83). The closed mitral valve leaflets were observed to descend into the LV throughout IVR in all subjects in apical four- and three-chamber and parasternal long-axis views by 6.0 + or - 3.3, 5.1 + or - 2.4, and 2.1 + or - 5.0 mm, respectively. In conclusion, LV relaxation during IVR is associated with changes in principal strains and untwisting, which are all correlated with an apparent increase in LV volume. Since closed mitral and aortic valves ensure true isovolumic conditions, the apparent volume change likely reflects expansion of the LV myocardium and the inward bowing of the closed mitral leaflets toward the LV interior.