Validity of Hemodynamic Monitoring Using Inert Gas Rebreathing Method in Patients With Chronic Heart Failure and Those Implanted With a Left Ventricular Assist Device.

OBJECTIVE

The present study assessed agreement between resting cardiac output estimated by inert gas rebreathing (IGR) and thermodilution methods in patients with heart failure and those implanted with a left ventricular assist device (LVAD).

METHODS AND RESULTS

Hemodynamic measurements were obtained in 42 patients, 22 with chronic heart failure and 20 with implanted continuous flow LVAD (34 males, aged 50 ± 11 years). Measurements were performed at rest using thermodilution and IGR methods. Cardiac output derived by thermodilution and IGR were not significantly different in LVAD (4.4 ± 0.9 L/min vs 4.7 ± 0.8 L/min, P = .27) or patients with heart failure (4.4 ± 1.4 L/min vs 4.5 ± 1.3 L/min, P = .75). There was a strong relationship between thermodilution and IGR cardiac index (r = 0.81, P = .001) and stroke volume index (r = 0.75, P = .001). Bland-Altman analysis showed acceptable limits of agreement for cardiac index derived by thermodilution and IGR, namely, the mean difference (lower and upper limits of agreement) for patients with heart failure -0.002 L/min/m (-0.65 to 0.66 L/min/m), and -0.14 L/min/m (-0.78 to 0.49 L/min/m) for patients with LVAD.

CONCLUSIONS

IGR is a valid method for estimating cardiac output and should be used in clinical practice to complement the evaluation and management of chronic heart failure and patients with an LVAD.