Evaluation of ventricular systolic function by speckle tracking technique in patients with biliary atresia before and after liver transplantation

To evaluate the ventricular function of patients with biliary atresia (BA) before and after liver transplantation using two-dimensional speckle tracking. Observational, analytical study with healthy control group, volunteers. We recruited patients from 0 to 18 years old who were candidates for liver transplantation and patients after six months of liver transplantation performed for BA from January 1997 to August 2015 at Children’s Institute of São Paulo University Medical School. The patients were submitted to a complete conventional echocardiographic study. After that, the images were captured for global longitudinal strain (GLS). A blood sample was collected for brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) level. Ejection fraction obtained by Simpson’s method was significantly higher in the hepatic pre-transplantation group (p