Diagnostic utility of right atrial reservoir strain to identify elevated right atrial pressure in heart failure

Accurate non-invasive estimation of right atrial pressure (RAP) is essential to assess volume status and optimize therapy in heart failure (HF). This study aimed to evaluate the utility of right atrial reservoir strain (RASr) assessed by speckle-tracking echocardiography to identify elevated RAP in HF and compare diagnostic performance with estimated RAP employing inferior vena cava size and collapsibility (RAPIVC), in addition to RA area. Association between RASr and invasive RAP (RAPInvasive) was examined in 103 HF subjects that underwent standard echocardiography with speckle-tracking strain analysis directly followed by right heart catheterization. The discriminatory ability of RASr to identify RAPInvasive > 7 mmHg was evaluated and compared with RAPIVC and RA area. RASr demonstrated association with RAPInvasive (β = −0.41, p