Strain rate imaging is a superior method for the assessment of regional myocardial function compared with Doppler tissue imaging: a study on patients with transcatheter device closure of atrial septal defect.

To compare the value of strain and strain rate imaging in assessing regional myocardial function to that of myocardial velocities, we studied 10 patients late after successful percutaneous atrial septal defect closure. Analysis was performed for atrial longitudinal peak systolic velocity, strain, and strain rate from the midsegment of interatrial septum, in correspondence of the device, and from the lateral left atrial wall. Placing the sample volume in the middle part of the atrial septal defect occluder, a bulky noncontractile element, passively moved by global heart motion, the new ultrasonic-derived myocardial deformation indexes demonstrated almost the absence of any deformations, whereas myocardial velocities failed to significantly discriminate between this noncontracting structure and the normal atrial wall.