Assessment of right heart functions in the patients with arteriovenous fistula for hemodialysis access: Right ventricular free wall strain and tricuspid regurgitation jet velocity as the predictors of right heart failure

Abstract

Objectives Previous studies have mostly focused on the left-sided cardiovascular changes, but right-sided cardiac changes and predictive factors have not been examined in advance following arteriovenous fistula (AVF) creation. We aimed to identify new parameters which contribute to the prediction of right heart failure (RHF) after AVF creation. Methods The study cohort comprised 81 patients who underwent AVF creation between January 2014 and April 2019 in our center. The study cohort was divided into the patients with RHF ( n = 15, 18.5%) and without RHF ( n = 66, 72.5%) following AVF creation. Results Mean age of cohort was 49.9 ± 14.7 years (range 23–66) and 39 (48.1%) were men. Approximately 74.07% (60 patients) were in New York Heart Association Class II and III profile preoperatively. Independent predictors for RHF following AVF were right ventricle longitudinal strain (RVLS) free wall <-19% [odds ratio (OR) 2.31, 95% CI 1.02–3.22], and tricuspid regurgitation jet velocity (TRJV) >2.5 m/s [odds ratio (OR) 5.68, 95% CI 1.21–4.38]. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was performed with a resulting area under the curve value of 0.86 (95% CI 0.55–0.89, p = 0.004) for RVLS free wall <-14.2% and 0.81 for TRJV >2.61 m/s (95% CI 0.55–0.89, p = 0.005) in predicting RHF following AVF. Conclusions RVLS free wall <-14.2% and TRJV >2.61 m/s were independent predictors of RHF following AVF creation. The patients at risk for having RHF following AVF creation or who may benefit from AVF should be identified with predictive parameters and prospective clinical studies.