BackgroundLeft ventricular dysfunction is an important co-morbidity of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and is associated with a poor prognosis in the adult population. In pediatric ESRD, left ventricular function is generally well preserved, but limited information is available on early changes in myocardial function. The aim of this study was to investigate myocardial mechanics in pediatric patients with ESRD using speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE).MethodsEchocardiographic studies, including M-mode, tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) and STE, were performed in 19 children on dialysis, 17 transplant patients and 33 age-matched controls. Strain measurements were performed from the apical four-chamber and the short axis view, respectively.ResultsThe interventricular and left ventricular posterior wall thickness was significantly increased in dialysis and transplant patients compared to healthy controls. No significant differences were found in shortening fraction, ejection fraction and systolic tissue Doppler velocities. Dialysis and transplant patients had a decreased mean longitudinal strain compared to healthy controls, with a mean difference of 3.1 [95 % confidence interval (CI) 2.0–4.4] and 2.7 (95 % CI 1.2–4.2), respectively. No differences were found for radial and circumferential strain.ConclusionsSpeckle-tracking echocardiography may reveal early myocardial dysfunction in the absence of systolic dysfunction measured by conventional ultrasound or TDI in children with ESRD.

Children with ESRD of non-Western origin in three Western countries were found to be at risk for impaired HRQoL on emotional and school functioning. These children warrant special attention.

Tissue Doppler imaging is a more sensitive and reliable method to detect diastolic dysfunction than conventional E/a ratio in children with end-stage renal disease.