Evaluation of Cardiac Function in Patients with Sickle Cell Disease with Left Ventricular Global Longitudinal Strain

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The importance of myocardial dysfunction in sickle cell disease (SCD) is currently debated. It is difficult to find a reliable index of function in patients with chronic overload as in SCD. Speckle tracking echocardiography, a new mean of evaluating cardiac function, might be a useful tool in SCD. It has been applied in many fields to detect early cardiac function deterioration, and it is less load dependent compared with other function parameters. Studies in patients with SCD are rare, and the results are conflicting. The present study aimed to determine whether left ventricular global longitudinal strain (LV-GLS) was abnormal in a population of adults with SCD and whether it was correlated with clinical or biological parameters. METHODS: We prospectively enrolled 37 patients and 34 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Echocardiography was performed in patients and controls. RESULTS: We found that the left ventricular diameter and mass were higher and the ejection fraction and longitudinal strain were lower in patients compared with controls. Diastolic dysfunction was uncommon. LV-GLS was abnormal in 21% of the patients. No correlation was observed between strain and clinical or biological parameters. CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that LV-GLS could be a useful tool for evaluating these patients. However, the clinical impact of reduced LV-GLS remains to be determined.