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Review
. 2014 Jul-Sep;24(3):72-77.
doi: 10.4103/2211-4122.143967.

Left Atrium: Still a Neglected Chamber?

Maria Chiara Todaro  1 , Bijoy K Khandheria  2
Affiliations
Review

Left Atrium: Still a Neglected Chamber?

Maria Chiara Todaro et al. J Cardiovasc Echogr. 2014 Jul-Sep.

Abstract

It is widely recognized that an effective cardiovascular system is based upon both a good ventricular-vascular interplay and a good ventricular-atrial interaction in all the phases of cardiac cycle. Moreover, left atrial dysfunction has been identified to be contributory in several common cardiovascular conditions, such as heart failure, atrial fibrillation and valvular heart disease; for instance, a good anatomical and functional assessment of this cardiac chamber is mandatory. For this purpose a multimodality imaging approach - including two-dimensional and three-dimensional echocardiography, speckle tracking technique, cardiac computed tomography (CT) and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) - is the most suitable one to achieve the best functional and anatomical evaluation of this cardiac chamber.

Keywords: Left atrium; multimodality imaging; speckle tracking echocardiography.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(Original) Left atrial strain during all the phases of cardiac cycle LAC = Left atrial contraction, IVC = Isovolumic contraction, IVR = Isovolumic relaxation, EF = Early filling
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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