Assessment of regional systolic and diastolic wall motion velocities in highly trained athletes by pulsed wave Doppler tissue imaging

We studied the relationship between left ventricular (LV) function and the increased LV mass in 18 highly trained rowing athletes (14 men, 4 women; mean age 20.7 ± 4.5 years) using pulsed wave Doppler tissue imaging (PWDTI). Thirteen untrained volunteers, matched for age and body mass index, acted as control participants. Peak systolic, early diastolic (Ev), and late diastolic (Av) myocardial velocities (cm/s); Ev/Av ratio; and isovolumic relaxation time (ms) were measured at the level of basal lateral wall and basal posterior interventricular septum (bas-IVS) segments. In comparison with control participants, athletes showed a greater LV cavity size (P