Quantification of systemic right ventricle by echocardiography

Abstract

Improvements in cardiac imaging have recently focused a great interest on the right ventricle (RV). In patients with congenital heart disease, the right ventricle (RV) may support the systemic circulation (systemic RV). There are 2 different anatomic conditions providing such physiology: the congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries (ccTGA) and the TGA surgically corrected by atrial switch. During the last decades, evidence is accumulating that progressive systemic RV failure develops leading to considerable morbidity and mortality. Various imaging modalities have been used to evaluate the systemic RV, but echocardiography is still predominantly used in clinical practice, allowing an anatomic and functional approach of the systemic RV function and the potential associated anomalies. The goal of this review is to offer a clinical perspective of the non-invasive evaluation of the systemic RV by echocardiography.

Keywords: Echocardiography; Fonction systolique; Systemic right ventricle; Systlic function; Ventricule droit systémique; Échographie.