Cited 14 times since 2020 (3.5 per year) source: EuropePMC European heart journal. Cardiovascular Imaging, Volume 21, Issue 4, 1 1 2020, Pages 363-374 Increased long-term mortality in women with high left ventricular ejection fraction: data from the CONFIRM (COronary CT Angiography EvaluatioN For Clinical Outcomes: An InteRnational Multicenter) long-term registry. Gebhard C, Maredziak M, Messerli M, Buechel RR, Lin F, Gransar H, Achenbach S, Al-Mallah MH, Andreini D, Bax JJ, Berman DS, Budoff MJ, Cademartiri F, Callister TQ, Chang HJ, Chinnaiyan K, Chow BJW, Cury RC, DeLago A, Feuchtner G, Hadamitzky M, Hausleiter J, Kim YJ, Leipsic J, Maffei E, Marques H, Gonçalves PA, Pontone G, Raff GL, Rubinshtein R, Shaw LJ, Villines TC, Lu Y, Jones EC, Peña JM, Min JK, Kaufmann PA
Aims
There are significant sex-specific differences in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), with a higher LVEF being observed in women. We sought to assess the clinical relevance of an increased LVEF in women and men.
Methods and results
A total of 4632 patients from the CONFIRM (COronary CT Angiography EvaluatioN For Clinical Outcomes: An InteRnational Multicenter) registry (44.8% women; mean age 58.7 ± 13.2 years in men and 59.5 ± 13.3 years in women, P = 0.05), in whom LVEF was measured by cardiac computed tomography, were categorized according to LVEF (low <55%, normal 55-65%, and high >65%). The prevalence of high LVEF was similar in both sexes (33.5% in women and 32.5% in men, P = 0.46). After 6 years of follow-up, no difference in mortality was observed in patients with high LVEF in the overall cohort (P = 0.41). When data were stratified by sex, women with high LVEF died more often from any cause as compared to women with normal LVEF (8.6% vs. 7.1%, log rank P = 0.032), while an opposite trend was observed in men (5.8% vs. 6.8% in normal LVEF, log rank P = 0.89). Accordingly, a first order interaction term of male sex and high LVEF was significant (hazard ratios 0.63, 95% confidence intervals 0.41-0.98, P = 0.043) in a Cox regression model of all-cause mortality adjusted for age, cardiovascular risk factors, and severity of coronary artery disease (CAD).
Conclusion
Increased LVEF is highly prevalent in patients referred for evaluation of CAD and is associated with an increased risk of death in women, but not in men. Differentiating between normal and hyperdynamic left ventricles might improve risk stratification in women with CAD.
Clinical trial registration
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01443637.
