These data indicate that squatting and dobutamine echocardiography are equally useful in the diagnosis of CAD. In selected patients, squatting echocardiography may be used in place of dobutamine echocardiography for the diagnosis of CAD.

In patients with CAD, ASH is associated with significant atherosclerosis of RCA and LCA, and more severe clinical manifestations of CAD and impaired LV function.

Aim. To investigate the relationship between echocardiographic parameters and laboratory immune inflammation signs in patients after coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia depending on the left ventricular (LV) involvement according to speckle tracking echocardiography (STE).Material and methods. The study included 216 patients (men, 51,1%, mean age, 50,1±11,1 years). The examination was carried out in patients 3 months after COVID-19 pneumonia. Patients were divided in 3 groups: group I (n=41) — diffuse decrease (≥4 segments the same LV level) of longitudinal strain (LS) according to STE; group II (n=67) — patients with regional decrease (LS reduction ≥3 segments corresponding to systems of the anterior, circumflex or right coronary arteries); group III — patients without visual left ventricle involvement (n=108).Results. There were no significant differences in LV ejection fraction — 68,9±4,1% in group I, 68,5±4,4% in group II and 68,6±4,3 in group III (p=0,934). A decrease in the global longitudinal left ventricle strain was detected significantly more often in groups I and II compared with group III (-17,8±2,0, -18,5±2,0 and -20,8±1,8%, respectively; p<0,001). At the same time, LS depression of LV basal level (-14,9±1,5, -16,8±1,2% and -19,1±1,7%; p<0,001), as well as a decrease in LS of LV inferior-posterior segments in group with diffuse involvement was detected significantly more often than in groups II and III. In addition, we revealed a significant difference in interleukin-6 concentration — 3,1 [2,5;4,0], 3,1 [2,4;3,8] and 2,5 [3,8;1,7] pg/ml, (p=0,033), C-reactive protein — 4,0 [2,2;7,9], 5,7 [3,2;7,9] and 2,4 [1,1;4,7] mg/l, (p<0,001), tumor necrosis factor-a — 5,9±1,9, 6,2±1,9 and 5,2±2,0 pg/ml, (p=0,004) and ferritin — 130,7 [56,5;220,0], 92,2 [26,0;129,4] and 51,0 [23,2;158,9] pg/l, respectively (p=0,025).Conclusion. A relationship was found between diffuse and regional left ventricular involvement according to STE and signs of immune inflammation in patients 3 months after COVID-19 pneumonia.

Aim. To study the changes of morphological and functional right ventricular (RV) parameters depending on the severity of coronavirus infection 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia over long-term follow-up.Material and methods. A total of 200 patients (men, 51,5%, mean age, 51,4±10,9 years) were examined at 2 control visits (3, 12 months after receiving two negative polymerase chain reaction tests). Patients were divided into following groups: group I (n=94) — lung tissue involvement ≥50% according to inhospital chest computed tomography (chest CT), group II (n=106) — lung tissue involvement˂50% according to chest CT.Results. The groups were comparable in key clinical and functional parameters 3 months after COVID-19 pneumonia. Speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) revealed a significant increase in following global longitudinal strain (LS) parameters: RV free wall endocardial LS (-22,7±3,2% and -24,3±3,8% in group I, p<0,001; -23,2±3,5% and -24,5±3,4% in group II, p><0,001), and RV endocardial LS (-21,0±3,1% and -22,5±3,7% in group I, p><0,001, -21,5±3,2% and -22,6±3,3% in group II, p=0,001 ). Significant increase of segmental endocardial LS was revealed in group I in the basal segments of RV free wall (-26,2±5,1% and -28,1±5,1%, p=0,004) and interventricular septum (IVS) (-16,2 [13,9; 19,5]% and -17,5 [14,6; 21,4]%, p=0,024), IVS middle segment (-20,3±4,1% and -21,5±4,8%, p=0,030), as well as in group II in the apical segments of RV free wall (-21,9±6,7% and -24,4±5,2%, p=0,001) and IVS (-23,7±4,7% and -24,9±4,8%, p=0,014). Conclusion. Recovery of RV function during a 12-month follow-up period in patients with both severe and moderate/mild lung involvement in COVID-19 was detected using the STE method.>˂0,001; -23,2±3,5% and -24,5±3,4% in group II, p˂0,001), and RV endocardial LS (-21,0±3,1% and -22,5±3,7% in group I, p˂0,001, -21,5±3,2% and -22,6±3,3% in group II, p=0,001 ). Significant increase of segmental endocardial LS was revealed in group I in the basal segments of RV free wall (-26,2±5,1% and -28,1±5,1%, p=0,004) and interventricular septum (IVS) (-16,2 [13,9; 19,5]% and -17,5 [14,6; 21,4]%, p=0,024), IVS middle segment (-20,3±4,1% and -21,5±4,8%, p=0,030), as well as in group II in the apical segments of RV free wall (-21,9±6,7% and -24,4±5,2%, p=0,001) and IVS (-23,7±4,7% and -24,9±4,8%, p=0,014).Conclusion. Recovery of RV function during a 12-month follow-up period in patients with both severe and moderate/mild lung involvement in COVID-19 was detected using the STE method.

Purpose: To study the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases and the correlations of left ventricle global longitudinal strain (LV GLS) in patients 3 months after proven COVID-19 pneumonia.Material and methods. 369 patients with proven COVID-19 pneumonia underwent a comprehensive clinical examination and echocardiography (EchoCG) after 3 months ± 3 weeks after their discharge from the hospital. Mean age of the patients was 54 [46; 61]; 50.9% of them were women. LV GLS was studied in 284 (77%) of patients with optimal visualization quality during echocardiography. LV GLS was considered reduced in the limit of > –18%. Study Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT04501822.Results. 3 months after discharge, obesity was noted in 46.5% of patients, cardiovascular diseases were diagnosed in 73.4%, including de novo in 8.4%. Arterial hypertension occurred in 71.5% of patients, coronary artery disease — in 22.5%. The average left ventricle (LV) ejection fraction was 67.8 ± 5.0%, the average LV GLS was –19.5 ± 2.3%. LV GLS was reduced in 24.4% of the patients. LV GLS showed no correlation with the patient age, NYHA functional class and LV ejection fraction. Reduced LV GLS was independently associated with male sex (OR 1.399; 95% CI 1.239–1.580; p < 0.001), obesity (OR 1.268; 95% CI 1.132–1.421; p < 0.0001), diabetes mellitus (OR 1.204; 95 % CI 1.017–1.425; p = 0.031) and hypertension (OR 1.120; 95% CI 1.002–1.252; p = 0.046). LV GLS showed moderate positive correlations with echocardiographic parameters of right ventricle (RV): the length (r = 0.346), diastolic (r = 0.333) and systolic area (r = 0.326), width at the basal (r = 0.358) and midlevel (r = 0.321), as well as with the dimension of the proximal RV outfl ow tract (r = 0.302, all p < 0.001). LV GLS showed a weak correlation with the severity of lung lesions during hospitalization (r = 0.184; p = 0.002).Conclusions. 3 months after COVID-19 pneumonia, cardiovascular diseases were diagnosed in 73.4%. Reduced LV GLS was observed in 24.4% of survivors and was associated with male sex, obesity, diabetes mellitus, arterial hypertension and linear and planimetric RV dimensions.