New Three-Dimensional Speckle-Tracking Echocardiography Identifies Global Impairment of Left Ventricular Mechanics with a High Sensitivity in Childhood Cancer Survivors

Background The aim of this case-control study was to assess the usefulness of three-dimensional (3D) speckle-tracking echocardiography in the evaluation of global left ventricular (LV) myocardial performance in adolescent and adult survivors of childhood cancers. Methods Fifty-three anthracycline-treated survivors of childhood cancers (mean age, 18.6 ± 5.1 years) and 38 controls were studied. Three-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography was performed to assess LV 3D global and segmental strain, time to peak segmental 3D strain, LV torsion, and ejection fraction. LV systolic dyssynchrony index (SDI) was calculated as the percentage of the standard deviation of times to peak strain of the 16 segments divided by the RR interval. A global performance index (GPI) was calculated as (global 3D strain × torsion)/SDI. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was calculated to determine the capability of various echocardiographic indices to discriminate between patients and controls. Results Compared with controls, patients had significantly reduced LV global 3D strain ( P < .001), torsion ( P