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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Cardiovasc. Med.
Sec. Cardiovascular Imaging
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fcvm.2024.1366180

The Incremental Value of Interatrial Septum Motion in Predicting Thrombus or Spontaneous Echo Contrast in patients with Non-valvular Atrial Fibrillation: An Observational Study on Transesophageal Echocardiography

Provisionally accepted
Decai Zeng Decai Zeng Shuai Chang Shuai Chang Xiaofeng Zhang Xiaofeng Zhang Yanfeng Zhong Yanfeng Zhong Cai Yongzhi Cai Yongzhi Tongtong Huang Tongtong Huang Ji Wu Ji Wu *
  • Department of Ultrasonic Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: The thickness and motion of the Interatrial Septum (IAS) possibly serves as indicators of both structural and functional remodeling of left atrium. This study aims to use transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) to assess IAS motion in non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) and investigate its correlation with the risk of spontaneous echo contrast (SEC) and thrombus (TH). Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study on 318 patients with NVAF who underwent transthoracic echocardiography and TEE. IAS motion was defined as the maximum displacement of IAS observed throughout the cardiac cycles using M-mode TEE. Results: The prevalence of SEC/TH was 39.9% (127/318) in the overall group. In paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF), the prevalence rate of SEC/TH was 25.3% (47/186), compared to 60.6% (80/132) in persistent atrial fibrillation (PeAF). Multivariable analyses showed that LA volume index (LAVI), mean E/e', S/D ratio, IAS motion and CHA2DS2-VASc scores were significantly associated with SEC/TH. Patients with lower IAS motion showed a higher prevalence of SEC/TH compared to those with higher IAS motion (71.3% vs. 11.6%; P<0.001). The IAS motion under sinus rhythm could better predict risk of SEC/TH, while the predictive efficacy under AF rhythm was slightly attenuated but still had a high AUC value (0.779). A significant positive correlation was observed between the IAS motion and the LAA filling velocity (PAF r = 0.47; P < 0.001 and PeAF r = 0.38; P < 0.001, respectively), LAA emptying velocity (PAF r = 0.55; P < 0.001 and PeAF r = 0.47; P < 0.001, respectively) and LAVI (PAF r = 0.59; P < 0.001 and PeAF r = 0.44; P < 0.001, respectively). The integration of the IAS motion to the CHA2DS2-VASc, LAVI and mean E/e' provided important incremental predictive value of SEC/TH (AUC = 0.859 vs. 0.826, P = 0.02). Conclusion: IAS motion measured by TEE correlates well with LAA flow velocity and LA size and is independently associated with SEC/TH in NVAF. Additionally, lower IAS motion is associated with a higher prevalence of SEC/TH. Furthermore, the integration of IAS motion to CHA2DS2-VASc, LAVI and mean E/e' can provide additional value for the prediction of SEC/TH.

    Keywords: atrail fibrillation, interatrial septum motion, transesophageal echocardiography, Spontaneous echo contrast, Thrombus

    Received: 27 Mar 2024; Accepted: 04 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Zeng, Chang, Zhang, Zhong, Yongzhi, Huang and Wu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Ji Wu, Department of Ultrasonic Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China

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