Myocardial strain analysis as a non-invasive screening test in the diagnosis of stable coronary artery disease

BACKGROUND: Coronary artery disease (CAD) is one of the most prevalent diseases around the world; however, finding the best noninvasive, low-cost, and more easily accessible test for its screening has been a challenge for several years. Eighty-nine patients suspected of stable CAD underwent 2D-speckle-tracking echocardiography (2DSTE) at resting position and offline longitudinal myocardial strain analysis, followed by coronary angiography. The correlation of the global longitudinal strain (GLS) and territorial longitudinal strain (TLS) with significant CAD (70% and more stenosis in at least one coronary artery) was then evaluated. RESULTS: The statistical analysis showed a significant correlation between low GLS and significant CAD (P=0.0001). The results also showed a significant correlation between low TLS and significant CAD in the left and right coronary artery territories. The optimal cut-off point of GLS for the detection of significant CAD was −19.25, with a sensitivity of 76.5% and specificity of 76.6%. CONCLUSION: This study confirmed the usefulness of 2DSTE myocardial strain analysis in diagnosis of CAD for detecting the affected coronary arteries using GLS and SLS.