End-systolic volume following surgical ventricular reconstruction impacts survival in patients with ischaemic dilated cardiomyopathy

Aims A left ventricular end-systolic volume (LVESV) >= 60 mL/m(2) has been shown to be associated with increased cardiac mortality after a reperfused myocardial infarction (MI). The reduction in LVESV following surgical ventricular reconstruction (SVR) is reported to be between 19% and 50% but its impact on prognosis is not well-established. The aim of this study was therefore to assess the impact on survival of a residual LVESV index (LVESVI) of >= or <60 mL/m(2) following SVR. Methods and results All patients undergoing SVR at our Centre between July 2001 and March 2009 were eligible to be included in this study if they had a preoperative LVESVI of >= 60 mL/m(2) and an LVESVI measurement performed at discharge (7-10 days after surgery). Two hundred and sixteen patients (aged 64 +/- 9 years, 33 women) satisfied these criteria. Coronary artery bypass graft was performed in 197 patients (91.2%) and mitral repair in 63 patients (29%). Left ventricular ESVI had decreased by 41% at discharge in the overall population. Patients were grouped according to the residual LVESVI at discharge as follows: Group 1, LVESVI >= 60 mL/m(2) (n = 71), and Group 2, LVESVI < 60 mL/m(2) (n = 145). In both groups, LVESVI decreased significantly with respect to baseline, by 29% in Group 1 and by 47% in Group 2. At multivariate analysis, the presence of a non-Q-wave MI and a preoperative internal diastolic diameter of 65 mm were the strongest predictors of a residual post-operative LVESVI of >= 60 mL/m(2). Risk of all-cause death was significantly higher in Group 1. Post-operative LVESVI of >= 60 mL/m(2) was an independent predictor of mortality at follow-up [Exp(B) = 10.7, CI: 2.67-42.9, P = 0.001]. Conclusion Our findings confirm the role of LVESVI in predicting survival following SVR; the lack of additional improvement in survival with SVR observed in the STICH trial might be due to the inadequate volume reduction (-19%).