Normal reference values of diastolic strain rate in healthy individuals: Chronological trends and the comparison according to genders

Purpose Recently, the diastolic strain rate ( DSR ) utilizing speckle‐tracking echocardiography has been proposed as a novel parameter for left ventricular diastolic function. We aimed to present normal reference data for those in a large‐sized, selected group of healthy individuals. Methods The current study was a part of the N ormal ech O cardiog R aphic M easurements in Kore A n popu L ation ( NORMAL ), a prospective nationwide survey from 23 centers in Korea. We analyzed 447 subjects (age 48 ± 15 years, 234 females) without any history of cardiovascular disease and presented the early and late DSR s ( SR e and SR a , respectively) in a total and gender‐/age‐specified groups. Results Among the total subjects, the mean SR e and SR a were 1.6 ± 0.4 S −1 and 0.8 ± 0.3 S −1 , respectively. With increasing age, there were significant trends of decreasing SR e and increasing SR a . Although both gender groups showed comparable age, the female group presented significantly higher SR e compared to male subjects with age of 20–59 years, which diminished after the age of 60 years. However, the SR a was comparable between genders in all age groups. On multiple linear regression, age showed independent associations with both SR e (β = −0.132, P = .010) and SR a (β = 0.440, P < .001), whereas gender did not show any association with SR e or SR a . Conclusion We present normal reference data of a novel parameter, DSR , in a large‐sized selected group with healthy Korean subjects. Additionally, we present significant age‐related changes both in SR e and SR a without the impact of their gender.