Right ventricular function in pulmonary hypertension

The right ventricle has recently attracted a lot of attention, having been shown to have a central function in overall cardiac performance in heart failure, cardiac surgery and congenital heart disease. Furthermore, in most of these cases the right ventricle has shown a strong prognostic value, irrespective of other cardiac disturbances. This has stimulated clinicians and researchers to identify noninvasive markers of right ventricular dysfunction using various technologies, for example, echocardiography and cardiac MRI. This review summarizes the role of right ventricular function in pulmonary hypertension and the most reliable markers of dysfunction, which should be routinely used in managing such cases.