Assessing Right Ventricular Function: The Role of Echocardiography in a Murine Model of Pulmonary Hypertension

][3] The role of these models for understanding the disease and developing new treatment cannot be overemphasized.Many investigators have scaled down from large animal models to small models because they are easier to manipulate, cheaper to maintain, and similar to the human cardiovascular system.Moreover, recent advances in echocardiography and micronanometer conductance catheters have made it possible to reliable evaluate cardiac function in small animal models. 4)5)Complete hemodynamic assessment of the animals used is essential, including assessment of both static and dynamic parameters as well as structural remodeling in determining the magnitude of these parameters.However, many of these advances involving the assessment of left heart only.In humans, echocardiographic assessment of right ventricular (RV) size and pulmonary hypertension is particularly challenging due to the retrosternal position and unusual crescent shape of RV.Small animal models have the added challenges of small size and extremely rapid heart rates (250-600 beat/min).In this issue of the Journal, Kohut et al.,6) in their research using high-frequency transducer probe (VisualSonics MS400, FUJIFILM VisualSonics, Inc., Toronto, Canada with a frequency range of 18-38 MHz), they have assessed the right heart of CD1 and C57BL/6 which are two commonly used murine models according to standard clinical guidelines and provided the practical guide and standard valued for cardiac assessments.A strongpoint of this study is accurate and in detail measurement of right heart dimension in different view, right heart systolic function with RV index of myocardial performance, tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion, S' and fractional area change, right heart diastolic function using pulse