Abnormal echocardiographic findings after COVID-19 infection: a multicenter registry.
Sebastian Garcia-ZamoraJosé M PiccoAugusto J LeporiMarcela I GalelloAriel K SaadMiguel AyónNancy Monga-AguilarIssam ShehadehCarlos F ManganielloCintia IzaguirreLuciano N FallabrinoMatias ClaveroFlavia MansurSebastián GhibaudoDaniela SevillaCesar A CadoMauricio PriottiKiera LiblikNatalio GastaldelloPablo M MerloPublished in: The international journal of cardiovascular imaging (2022)
The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has transformed health systems worldwide. There is conflicting data regarding the degree of cardiovascular involvement following infection. A registry was designed to evaluate the prevalence of echocardiographic abnormalities in adults recovered from COVID-19. We prospectively evaluated 595 participants (mean age 45.5 ± 14.9 years; 50.8% female) from 10 institutions in Argentina and Brazil. Median time between infection and evaluation was two months, and 82.5% of participants were not hospitalized for their infection. Echocardiographic studies were conducted with General Electric equipment; 2DE imaging and global longitudinal strain (GLS) of both ventricles were performed. A total of 61.7% of the participants denied relevant cardiovascular history and 41.8% had prolonged symptoms after resolution of COVID-19 infection. Mean left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was 61.0 ± 5.5% overall. In patients without prior comorbidities, 8.2% had some echocardiographic abnormality: 5.7% had reduced GLS, 3.0% had a LVEF below normal range, and 1.1% had wall motion abnormalities. The right ventricle (RV) was dilated in 1.6% of participants, 3.1% had a reduced GLS, and 0.27% had reduced RV function. Mild pericardial effusion was observed in 0.82% of participants. Male patients were more likely to have new echocardiographic abnormalities (OR 2.82, p = 0.002). Time elapsed since infection resolution (p = 0.245), presence of symptoms (p = 0.927), or history of hospitalization during infection (p = 0.671) did not have any correlation with echocardiographic abnormalities. Cardiovascular abnormalities after COVID-19 infection are rare and usually mild, especially following mild infection, being a low GLS of left and right ventricle, the most common ones in our registry. Post COVID cardiac abnormalities may be more frequent among males.
Keyphrases
- ejection fraction
- left ventricular
- aortic stenosis
- coronavirus disease
- mitral valve
- pulmonary hypertension
- end stage renal disease
- left atrial
- sars cov
- chronic kidney disease
- newly diagnosed
- heart failure
- hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
- peritoneal dialysis
- high resolution
- machine learning
- patient reported outcomes
- sleep quality
- risk factors
- big data
- pulmonary arterial hypertension
- acute coronary syndrome