Cardiac 5

What method of left ventricular systolic function determination is shown here? What does the measurement indicate?

Answer

The image above shows an m-mode tracing in the parasternal long axis view. The m-mode cursor is placed across the tips of the anterior mitral valve leaflet. The measurement shown is EPSS, which stands for E-point septal separation. It measures the distance between the tip of the anterior mitral valve leaflet at end diastole and the LV interventricular septal wall. A measurement of less than 7mm is indicative of normal LV systolic function. A measurement greater than 10mm is indicative of severe LV dysfunction. The EPSS is 10mm in the image above.