Abstract
Objective: The transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) is the primary method to evaluate the right ventricular (RV) functions, but the assessment of the RV by TTE can be difficult due to the complex structural and anatomical position of the RV. The transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is a good alternative to TTE when faced with difficulties in obtaining images. In this study, we investigated the agreement between TTE and TEE for the evaluation of the RV functions.
Material and Methods: This study was carried out on 78 patients between January 2017 and May 2017. The TTE and TEE records of the patients were compared by using Bland Altman analysis, and the mean difference and confidence interval between them were analyzed.
Results: Seventy-eight patients were involved in this study. The mean age of patients was 42 years, and 34% of the participants were female. In Bland Altman analysis, there was a moderate agreement between TTE and TEE in terms of mean difference of the E velocity, the A velocity, E’, A’. In contrast, there was a good agreement between TTE and TEE in terms of mean difference of RV strain, RV strain rate E, RV strain rate A, RV strain rate S which means that it could be appropriate to use them interchangeably.
Conclusion: The deformation parameters are essential for analyzing the RV functions, making a clinical decision, and estimating adverse events. The deformation parameters measured using TEE may yield information as accurate and useful as those measured using TTE, and they may be used interchangeably in making a clinical decision.