[Determination of the diastolic function of the left ventricle in post-infarction patients using a complex echocardiographic index].

The diastolic function of 25 patients with ischemic heart disease was studied by both digitized M-mode and Doppler echocardiography. The control groups were a group of healthy subjects and patients with hypertension, resp. There was a significant difference in the diastolic parametres of the healthy and the diseased groups. The altered diastolic function of the latter showed, however, little variation. A new complex diastolic index was formed from the parametres involved in Doppler and M-mode echocardiography. It contains early and late diastolic filling rates, the isovolumic relaxation period, and the diametric change of the left ventricle during the isovolumic relaxation period. This index allowed us to separate the altered diastolic functions of patients with ischemic heart disease from those with left ventricular hypertrophy.