Myocardial Strain Imaging

Myocardial strain refers to the deformation (shortening, lengthening, or thickening) of the myocardium through the cardiac cycle. Myocardial strain can be measured by tissue Doppler imaging or, more recently, speckle-tracking echocardiography. Speckle-tracking echocardiography uses imaging software to assess the movement of specific markers in the myocardium that are detected in standard echocardiograms. It is proposed that a reduction in myocardial strain may indicate sub-clinical impairment of the heart and can be used to inform treatment before the development of symptoms and irreversible myocardial dysfunction.