Transmural distribution of three-dimensional systolic strains in stunned myocardium

Regional function in stunned myocardium is usually thought to be more depressed in the endocardium than the epicardium. This has been attributed to the greater loss of blood flow at the endocardium during ischemia. We measured transmural distributions of 3D systolic strains relative to local myofiber axes in open-chest anesthetized dogs before 15 minutes of left anterior descending coronary artery occlusion and during 2 hours of reperfusion. During ischemia, regional myocardial blood flow was reduced 84% at the endocardium and 32% at the epicardium (P