Background— Tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) detects left ventricular dysfunction in patients with heart failure and normal ejection fraction, but the prognostic significance of left ventricular dysfunction by TDI in the general population is unknown. Methods and Results— Within the Copenhagen City Heart Study, a large community-based population study, cardiac function was evaluated in 1036 participants by both conventional echocardiography and TDI. Averages of peak systolic (s′), early diastolic (e′), and late diastolic (a′) velocities from 6 mitral annular sites were used. TDI was furthermore quantified by a combined index (eas index) of diastolic and systolic performance: e′/(a′×s′). During follow-up (median, 5.3 years), 90 participants died. Left ventricular dysfunction by TDI, in terms of low s′ (hazard ratio, 1.23 per 1-cm/s decrease; P <0.05) and a′ (hazard ratio, 1.20 per 1-cm/s decrease; P =0.001), were significant predictors of death in Cox proportional-hazards models adjusted for clinical variables (age, sex, body mass index, heart rate, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and ischemic heart disease) and conventional echocardiography. The adjusted hazard ratio for death in the third tertile compared with the first tertile of the combined index of systolic and diastolic performance by TDI was 2.5 ( P <0.005). Conclusions— In the general population, in which most are free of left ventricular systolic dysfunction and restrictive diastolic filling using conventional echocardiographic parameters, left ventricular dysfunction by TDI is a powerful and independent predictor of death, especially when systolic performance and diastolic performance are considered together, recognizing their interdependency and their complex relation to deteriorating cardiac function.

Summary: Little is known about the risk of stroke associated with left atrial enlargement in patients in sinus rhythm, and whether such patients may have an unmet need for thromboprophylaxis. In this systematic review we summarise the existing evidence concerning left atrial size and risk of stroke in patients in sinus rhythm. Nine cohort studies were identified, analysing a total of 67,875 participants and 3,093 stroke outcomes. Rates of stroke per 100 person-years in patients with left atrial enlargement and in sinus rhythm ranged from 0.59 in a population-based cohort to 2.06 in patients referred for echocardiography. All studies reported a higher risk of stroke with larger/enlarged left atrium compared to smaller/normal sized left atrium. Two studies found indications of modification by sex, with only positive associations observed in women. Left atrial enlargement may represent an important predictor of stroke across a variety of patient populations in sinus rhythm. The underlying aetiology explaining this observed higher risk is likely to be multifactorial and not confined to a potential direct effect of left atrial enlargement on thromboembolic risk. Formal stroke risk stratification among patients with left atrial enlargement may further help identify patients who stand to gain from preventive antithrombotic therapy.Supplementary Material to this article is available online at www.thrombosis-online.com.

Only 30% of patients receiving an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) for primary prevention receive appropriately therapy. We sought to investigate the value of tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) to predict ventricular tachycardia (VT), ventricular fibrillation (VF), and cardiovascular mortality (CVD) in patients with primary prevention ICD. In total, 151 ICD patients meeting primary prevention criteria and with no history of ventricular arrhythmias were included. All participants were examined by conventional 2D echocardiography and TDI echocardiography. Longitudinal systolic ( s ′), early diastolic ( e ′), and late diastolic ( a ′) myocardial velocities were measured using TDI at six mitral annular sites and averaged to provide global estimates. Forty patients experienced the combined endpoint of VT, VF, or CVD during a median follow-up of 2.3 years. Left ventricular ejection fraction, global longitudinal strain, E / e ′, global s ′, and global e ′ were not significantly different in patients who developed VT/VF/CVD compared with those who did not. In contrast, global a ′ was significantly lower in patients with an unfavourable outcome compared with those without (4.8 ± 2.0 vs. 5.7 ± 1.8 cm/s, P = 0.020). Global a ′ remained an independent predictor of VT/VF/CVD after multivariable adjustment for age, gender, β-blocker therapy, and deceleration time (HR = 1.25 [1.02, 1.54], P = 0.032). Regional analysis revealed that a depressed a ′ in the inferior wall drives the predictive capability of a ′. Late diastolic velocity by TDI seems to be a superior echocardiographic predictor of VT/VF/CVD in ischaemic cardiomyopathy. Additionally, impaired late diastolic velocity in the inferior myocardial wall seems to be a paramount marker of future VT/VF/CVD.

Aims: We investigated the association between potassium levels and 90-day all-cause mortality in atrial fibrillation or flutter (AF) patients co-treated with diuretics and rate- or rhythm-controlling drugs. Methods and results: During 2000–12, first-time AF patients treated with beta-blockers, amiodarone, sotalol, verapamil, or digoxin combined with any diuretic within 90 days post-AF discharge were included. Following co-treatment, a potassium measurement within 90 days after initiating diuretic treatment was required. Mortality risk associated with potassium 5.0 mmol/L (reference: 4.1–4.4 mmol/L) was assessed using multivariable Cox regression. In total, 14 425 AF patients were included (median age: 78 years; women: 52%). Patients most often received beta-blocker monotherapy (29%), beta-blockers and digoxin combined (25%), digoxin monotherapy (24%), amiodarone monotherapy (3%), and verapamil monotherapy (3%). Increased 90-day mortality risk was associated with 5.0 mmol/L: (HR 1.84, 95% CI 1.53–2.21). Compared with beta-blocker monotherapy, rate- or rhythm-controlling drugs did not modify the association between potassium groups and mortality risk. Conclusion: In addition to hypo- and hyperkalaemia, low and high normal range potassium levels were associated with increased 90-day mortality risk in AF patients co-treated with diuretics and rate- or rhythm-controlling drugs. These associations were independent of rate- or rhythm-controlling drugs.

Background: ECG abnormalities are associated with adverse outcomes in the general population, but their prognostic significance in severe mental illness (SMI) remains unexplored. We investigated associations between no, minor, and major ECG abnormalities and fatal cardiovascular disease (CVD) among patients with SMI compared with controls without mental illness. Methods and Results: We cross‐linked data from Danish nationwide registries and included primary care patients with digital ECGs from 2001 to 2015. Patients had SMI if they were diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or severe depression before ECG recording. Controls were required to be without any prior mental illness or psychotropic medication use. Fatal CVD was assessed using hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% CIs and standardized 10‐year absolute risks. Of 346 552 patients, 10 028 had SMI (3%; median age, 54 years; male, 45%), and 336 524 were controls (97%; median age, 56 years; male, 48%). We observed an interaction between SMI and ECG abnormalities on fatal CVD ( P <0.001). Severe mental illness was associated with fatal CVD across no (HR, 2.17; 95% CI, 1.95–2.43), minor (HR, 1.90; 95% CI, 1.49–2.42), and major (HR, 1.40; 95% CI, 1.26–1.55) ECG abnormalities compared with controls. Across age‐ and sex‐specific subgroups, SMI patients with ECG abnormalities but no CVD at baseline had highest standardized 10‐year absolute risks of fatal CVD. Conclusions: ECG abnormalities conferred a poorer prognosis among patients with SMI compared with controls without mental illness. SMI patients with ECG abnormalities but no CVD represent a high‐risk population that may benefit from greater surveillance and risk management.