研究目的
To evaluate the feasibility of speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) analyses in healthy children and compare the reliability of STE for left and right ventricles between the EchoPAC (GE Healthcare) and QLAB (Philips Healthcare) software systems.
研究成果
STE analysis in healthy children shows excellent feasibility for LV longitudinal and circumferential strains but limited for RV. Variability is primarily due to differences between ultrasound systems and sonographers, not the software itself. These findings should be considered in clinical practice, and standardization efforts should continue.
研究不足
The study only included healthy children, resulting in a narrow range of strain values that may affect ICC sensitivity. It did not include other vendors or vendor-independent software, and RV analysis had poor tracking quality in some views.
1:Experimental Design and Method Selection:
A prospective cross-sectional study design was used to assess five levels of reproducibility: intra/inter-ultrasound system, intra/inter-sonographer, and intra/inter-analyzer. Statistical methods included intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and Bland-Altman analysis for reliability assessment.
2:Sample Selection and Data Sources:
156 healthy children aged 0 to 18 years were recruited from pediatric cardiology consultations, with normal physical exams, ECGs, and echocardiograms. Exclusion criteria included chronic diseases or treatments.
3:List of Experimental Equipment and Materials:
Philips IE-33 ultrasound system, General Electric Vivid E9 ultrasound system, EchoPAC software version 112 (GE Healthcare), QLAB software version 10 (Philips Healthcare), various probes (12 MHz, 8 MHz, 5 MHz), and standard echocardiography settings.
4:Experimental Procedures and Operational Workflow:
Echocardiograms were performed by five senior pediatric cardiologists using harmonized protocols. Images were acquired in specific views (e.g., apical LV, RV free wall), and STE analyses were conducted manually by investigators tracing endocardium. Reproducibility was tested through repeated measurements under different conditions (e.g., same/different sonographer, same/different ultrasound system).
5:Data Analysis Methods:
ICCs were calculated for reliability, with values interpreted as poor (<0.5), moderate (0.5-0.75), good (0.75-0.9), or excellent (>0.9). Bland-Altman plots were used for agreement analysis. Statistical significance was set at p<0.05, using SAS version 9.2.
独家科研数据包,助您复现前沿成果,加速创新突破
获取完整内容