Background - The prognosis of idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) patients has improved remarkably in recent decades with guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT). Left ventricular reverse remodeling (LVRR) is one of the major therapeutic goals. Whether myocardial fibrosis or inflammation would reverse associated with LVRR remains unknown. Methods - A total of 157 prospectively enrolled DCM patients underwent baseline and follow-up CMR examinations with a median interval of 13.7 months (interquartile range: 12.2-18.5 months). LVRR was defined as an absolute increase in LV ejection fraction (LVEF) of >10% to the final value of ≥ 35% and a relative decrease in LV end-diastolic volume (EDV) of >10%. Statistical analyses were performed using paired t-test and student t-test, logistic regression analysis, and linear regression analysis. Results - Forty-eight (31%) patients reached LVRR. At baseline, younger age, worse NYHA class, new-onset heart failure, lower LVEF, absence of late gadolinium enhancement (LGE), lower myocardial T2, and extracellular volume (ECV) were significant predictors of LVRR. During the follow-up, patients with and without LVRR both showed a significant decrease of myocardial native T1 (LVRR: [baseline]1303.0±43.6ms; [follow-up]1244.7±51.8ms; without LVRR: [baseline]1308.5±80.5ms; [follow-up]1287.6±74.9ms, both p < 0.001), matrix and cellular volumes while no significant difference was observed in T2 or ECV values after treatment. Conclusions - In idiopathic DCM patients, the absence of LGE, lower T2, and ECV values at baseline are significant predictors of LVRR. The myocardial T1, matrix, and cell volume decrease significantly in patients with LVRR after GDMT.

Background The value of right atrial (RA) function in cardiovascular diseases is currently limited. This study was to explore the prognostic value of RA strain derived from fast long axis method by cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) in patients with non-ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Methods We prospectively enrolled patients with DCM who underwent CMR from June 2012 to March 2019 and 120 age- and sex-matched healthy subjects. Fast long-axis strain method was performed to assess the RA phasic function including RA reservoir strain, conduit strain, and booster strain. The predefined primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. The composite heart failure (HF) endpoint included HF death, HF readmission, and heart transplantation. Cox regression analysis and Kaplan–Meier survival curve were performed to describe the association between RA strain and outcomes. Results A total of 624 patients (444 men, mean 48 years) were studied. After a median follow-up of 32.5 months, 116 patients (18.6%) experienced all-cause mortality and 205 patients (32.9%) reached composite HF endpoint. RA function was impaired in DCM patients compared with healthy subjects (all P < 0.001). After adjustment for covariates, RA reservoir strain [hazard ratio (HR) (per 5% decrease) 1.19, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.03–1.37, P = 0.022] and conduit strain [HR (per 5% decrease) 1.37, 95% CI 1.03–1.84, P = 0.033] were independent predictors of all-cause mortality. Moreover, RA strain added incremental prognostic value for the prediction of adverse cardiac events over baseline clinical and CMR predictors (all P < 0.05). Conclusion RA strain by fast long-axis analysis is independently associated with adverse clinical outcomes in patients with DCM. Trial registration: Trial registration number: ChiCTR1800017058; Date of registration: 2018-07-10 (Retrospective registration); URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov

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