Relationship of exercise capacity and left ventricular dimensions in patients with a normal ejection fraction. An exploratory study

Extreme endurance exercise is known to be associated with an enlargement of the left ventricular (LV) chamber, whereas inactivity results in inverse changes. It is unknown if these dimensional relationships exist in patients. We analyzed the relationship of exercise capacity and LV dimension in a cohort of sequential patients with a normal ejection fraction undergoing stress echocardiography. In a total of 137 studies the following questions were addressed: (a) is there a difference in LV dimensions of patients with an excellent exercise capacity versus patients with a poor exercise capacity, (b) how is LV dimension and exercise capacity affected by LV wall thickness and (c) how do LV dimensions of patients who are unable to walk on a treadmill compare to the above groups. Patients with a poor exercise capacity or who are unable to physically exercise have a 34 percent smaller LV cavity size when compared to patients with an excellent exercise capacity (p