Publications by authors named "Eigir Einarsen"
Impact of sex-specific thresholds for low flow in assessment of prognosis in concordantly and discordantly graded aortic valve stenosis.
Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging
January 2025
Aims: Sex-specific low flow was recently defined as stroke volume index (SVi) ≤ 40 mL/m² in men and ≤32 mL/m² in women. We tested the prognostic association of these cut-offs in patients with aortic stenosis (AS) with concordantly and discordantly graded AS [concordantly graded AS by energy loss (CGASEL) and discordantly graded AS by energy loss (DGASEL)] based on pressure recovery adjusted aortic valve area [energy loss (EL)].
Methods And Results: Data from 1351 patients with asymptomatic AS, peak jet velocity <4 m/s, and preserved left ventricular ejection fraction enrolled in the Simvastatin and Ezetimibe in Aortic Stenosis study were used.
Article Synopsis
- The study examined the global myocardial work index (GWI), a new measure of heart function, in relation to sex and body mass index (BMI) among 467 individuals without known heart disease.
- Women had higher BMI, aortic augmentation pressure, left ventricular global longitudinal strain (GLS), and GWI compared to men, with these differences being statistically significant.
- The higher GWI in women was linked to increased left ventricular workload due to higher aortic augmentation pressure, which explained the sex difference but became non-significant when accounting for other hemodynamic factors.
Article Synopsis
- Global left ventricular (LV) function declines as aortic valve stenosis (AS) worsens, but the specific deformation changes from base to apex had not been studied until now.
- A cross-sectional study involving 85 AS patients used 3D echocardiography to assess global LV function and deformation patterns by categorizing patients into mild, moderate, and severe AS groups.
- Results showed that as AS severity increased, global and regional myocardial function decreased, particularly in males and those with higher body mass index, linking LV mechanics to AS severity and cardiovascular risk factors.*
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to investigate whether patients with asymptomatic aortic stenosis (AS) showing discordant grading after adjusting for pressure recovery have a higher cardiovascular risk.
- Data from 1,353 patients enrolled in a specific study revealed that 14.5% had discordantly graded aortic stenosis (DGAS), which was linked to older age, female gender, and other risk factors.
- Cox regression analysis demonstrated that DGAS significantly increased the risk of heart failure hospitalization, cardiovascular death, and all-cause mortality, independent of other factors.
First-Phase Ejection Fraction Predicts Response to Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy and Adverse Outcomes.
JACC Cardiovasc Imaging
December 2021
Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the value of first-phase ejection fraction (EF1), to predict response to cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) and clinical outcomes after CRT.
Background: CRT is an important treatment for patients with chronic heart failure. However, even in carefully selected cases, up to 40% of patients fail to respond.
Article Synopsis
- Researchers investigated how low myocardial energetic efficiency (MEEi) could predict mortality in asymptomatic aortic stenosis (AS) patients without diabetes or known cardiovascular disease.
- Data from 1,703 AS patients were analyzed over 4.3 years, revealing that an MEEi value below 0.34 mL/s per gram correlated with a higher risk of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality.
- The study concluded that low MEEi reflects increased cardiometabolic risk and reduced left ventricular function, independently predicting worse outcomes in this patient group.
Higher Acceleration/Ejection Time Ratio Predicts Impaired Outcome in Aortic Valve Stenosis.
Circ Cardiovasc Imaging
January 2021
Background: Acceleration time (AT)/ejection time (ET) ratio is a marker of aortic valve stenosis (AS) severity and predicts outcome in moderate-severe AS.
Methods: We explored the association of increased AT/ET ratio on prognosis in 1530 asymptomatic patients with presumably mild-moderate AS, normal ejection fraction, and without known diabetes or cardiovascular disease. Patients were part of the SEAS study (Simvastatin Ezetimibe Aortic Stenosis).
Impact of arterio-ventricular interaction on first-phase ejection fraction in aortic stenosis.
Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging
May 2021
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the relationship between first-phase ejection fraction (EF1) and factors like myocardial contractility and arterial load in patients with aortic stenosis (AS).
- Data from 114 patients with varying severities of AS were analyzed, focusing on how these factors influence EF1 measured during peak aortic jet velocity.
- Results indicated that lower EF1 correlates with reduced myocardial contractility and increased arterial load, regardless of AS severity, suggesting these could be important markers for assessing cardiac function in AS patients.
Background: Young and middle-aged ischemic stroke survivors have a high prevalence of hypertension, increased arterial stiffness and abnormal left ventricular (LV) geometry, which all are associated with the presence of LV diastolic dysfunction. However, the prevalence and covariates of diastolic dysfunction in these patients have not been reported.
Objectives: To explore diastolic dysfunction in ischemic stroke patients aged 15-60 years included in the Norwegian Stroke in the Young Study.
Objective: Whether increased myocardial oxygen demand could help explain the association of left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy with higher adverse event rate in patients with aortic valve stenosis (AS) is unknown.
Methods: Data from 1522 patients with asymptomatic mostly moderate AS participating in the Simvastatin-Ezetimibe in AS study followed for a median of 4.3 years was used.
Normalization of left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy is expected after successful aortic valve replacement (AVR) in patients with aortic valve stenosis (AS), but is not always observed. We tested the impact of body mass index (BMI) ≥30 kg/m on persistent post-AVR LV hypertrophy. In the present subanalysis of Simvastatin Ezetimibe in Aortic Stenosis study, clinical and echocardiographic data of 399 patients with severe AS who underwent surgical AVR were analyzed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Sex differences in risk factors of aortic valve calcification (AVC) by echocardiography have not been reported from a large prospective study in aortic stenosis (AS).
Methods: AVC was assessed using a prognostically validated visual score and grouped into none/mild or moderate/severe AVC in 1725 men and women with asymptomatic AS in the Simvastatin Ezetimibe in Aortic Stenosis study. The severity of AS was assessed by the energy loss index (ELI) taking pressure recovery in the aortic root into account.
Asymmetric interventricular septum hypertrophy (ASH) has been associated with increased perioperative morbidity and mortality in patients with severe, symptomatic aortic valve stenosis (AS). Less is known about the prognostic impact of ASH during progression of AS. Clinical, echocardiographic, and outcome data from 1,691 patients with initially asymptomatic, mostly moderate AS, participating in the Simvastatin Ezetimibe in Aortic Stenosis (SEAS) study was used.
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