Left atrial function in patients with light chain amyloidosis: A transthoracic 3D speckle tracking imaging study

BACKGROUND:Systemic light chain amyloidosis (AL) is characterized by the extracellular deposition of amyloid fibrils. Transthoracic echocardiography is the modality of choice to assess cardiac function in patients with AL. Whereas left ventricular (LV) function has been well studied in this patient population, data regarding the value of left atrial (LA) function in AL patients are lacking. In this study, we aim to examine the impact of LA volumes and function on survival in AL patients as assessed by real-time 3D echocardiography.METHODS:A total of 77 patients (67±10 years, 60% men) with confirmed AL and 39 healthy controls were included. All standard 2D echocardiographic and 3D-LA parameters were obtained.RESULTS:Fourteen patients (18%) were in Mayo Clinic (MC) stage I, 30 (39%) in stage II, and 33 (43%) in stage III at initial evaluation. There was no significant difference among the MC stages groups in terms of age, gender, or cardiovascular risk factors. As compared to patients in MC II and MC I, those in MC III had significantly larger indexed 3D-LA volumes (MCIII: 46±15mL/m2, MC II: 38±12mL/m2, and MC I: 23±9mL/m2, p