Relationship between echocardiographic tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion and mortality in COVID‐19 patients: A Meta‐analysis

Background The evaluation of the tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) is recommended to assess the right ventricular (RV) systolic function. We performed an updated meta‐analysis of the association between TAPSE and short‐term mortality in COVID‐19 patients. Methods MEDLINE and Scopus databases were searched to locate all the articles published up to May 1, 2021, reporting data on TAPSE among COVID‐19 survivors and non‐survivors. The difference of TAPSE between the two groups was expressed as mean difference (MD) with the corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) using the Mantel‐Haenszel random effects model. Both Q value and I 2 statistics were used to assess heterogeneity across studies. Sensitivity analysis, meta‐regression, and evaluation of bias were performed. Results Twelve studies, enrolling 1272 COVID‐19 patients (778 males, mean age 69.3 years), met the inclusion criteria and were included in the final analysis. Non‐survivors had a lower TAPSE compared to survivors (MD = −3.089 mm, 95% CI = −4.087 to −2.091, p < 0.0001, I 2 = 79.0%). Both the visual inspection of the funnel plot and the Egger's tests (t = 1.195, p = 0.259) revealed no evidence of publication bias. Sensitivity analysis confirmed yielded results. Meta‐regression analysis evidenced that the difference in TAPSE between the two groups was only influenced by pre‐existing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD, p = 0.02). Conclusion COVID‐19 non‐survivors have a lower TAPSE when compared to survivors, especially in COPD subjects. Current data suggest that the TAPSE assessment may provide useful information regarding the short‐term prognosis of COVID‐19 patients during the infection.