Mild mitral insufficiency is a marker of impaired left ventricular performance in aortic stenosis.

Whether mitral insufficiency is a marker of decreased left ventricular function in patients undergoing aortic valve replacement for sever aortic stenosis was examined. Hemodynamic measurements in 26 patients with pure aortic stenosis (Group 1), 17 patients with aortic stenosis and grade 1 or 2 mitral insufficiency (Group 2) and 19 control patients were compared. All patients were free of significant coronary artery disease. Ventriculograms were digitized for calculation of ejection fraction, ventricular volumes and wall stress. Despite similar aortic valve areas, Group 2 patients had more advanced symptoms. Cardiac index was comparably decreased in Group 1 (2.6 +/- 0.4 liters/min per m2) and Group 2 (2.7 +/- 0.8 liters/min per m2) compared with the control group (3.8 +/- 0.6 liters/min per m2). Left ventricular end-diastolic and end-systolic volume indexes were increased only in Group 2 (119 +/- 35 and 73 +/- 36 ml/m2, respectively). Likewise, end-systolic wall stress was increased only in Group 2 (149 +/- 54 kdynes/cm2). Ejection fraction was decreased to a greater extent in Group 2 (42 +/- 17%) than in Group 1 (59 +/- 13%) as compared with values in the control group (68 +/- 5%). Although an inverse relation existed between ejection fraction and end-systolic stress in all groups, the ejection fraction (extrapolated to end-systolic stress = 0) was decreased in Group 2, and the slope of the relation was increased in Groups 1 and 2. The end-systolic stress/end-systolic volume index ratio, an index of ventricular performance, was also decreased to a greater extent in Group 2.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)