Tissue Doppler echocardiographic assessment of cardiac function in children with bronchial asthma

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the role of tissue Doppler echocardiography in assessment of ventricular function in pediatric patients with bronchial asthma (BA). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty-one pediatric patients with BA and 30 age- and sex-matched healthy subjects were studied. BA patients were divided into two groups: mild BA (n = 33) and moderate to severe BA (n = 18). All subjects were examined on conventional and tissue Doppler echocardiography, and 44 patients had pulmonary function tests on spirometry within 1 week of echocardiographic examination. RESULTS: Conventional echocardiographic parameters were all similar in mild asthmatic patients and control subjects. Tricuspid E velocity, E/A ratio and isovolumetric relaxation time (IVRT) in moderate and severe cases differed significantly from mild cases and control subjects. E', A', E'/A' ratio and IVRT of the lateral tricuspid annulus, and IVRT of the medial and lateral mitral annuli were different between mild cases and control subjects. E' velocity and IVRT of the lateral tricuspid annulus and IVRT of the medial and lateral mitral annuli were also different between mild cases and moderate to severe cases. Pulmonary function tests correlated well with E', E'/A' and IVRT of lateral tricuspid annulus. CONCLUSION: Patients with BA have subclinical right ventricular diastolic dysfunction even in the early stages. The severity of the functional impairment is parallel with the severity of the disease. Tissue Doppler echocardiography has a greater predictive value than conventional imaging, and is useful for evaluating ventricular function in patients with BA.