Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39636336›Full record

SynthesisThe international journal of cardiovascular imaging2025

Speckle-tracking echocardiography of left and right ventricle and acute cellular rejection in orthotropic heart transplantation: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Eleni Xourgia, Kristina Brignoli, Olivier Linder, Alexandra-Maria Neagoe, Lukas Capek, Jolie Bruno, Eva Strickler, Adam Bakula, Maryam Pavlicek-Bahlo, Monika Fürholz and 5 more

Abstract readSystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in The international journal of cardiovascular imaging, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

15 authors.

Eleni Xourgia *Department of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Kristina Brignoli *Department of Internal Medicine, Bürgerspital Solothurn, Solothurn, Switzerland.
Olivier Linder *Department of Internal Medicine, Bürgerspital Solothurn, Solothurn, Switzerland.
Alexandra-Maria NeagoeDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Lukas CapekDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Jolie BrunoDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Eva StricklerDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Adam BakulaDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Maryam Pavlicek-BahloDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Monika FürholzDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Christian MusterDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Patrizia MalaguttiDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Michele MartinelliDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Lukas HunzikerDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Bruno SchneggDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland. bruno.schnegg@insel.ch.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

After a cardiac transplantation, the steering of immunosuppression requires an active search for acute cellular rejection (ACR). Surveillance with endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) is the gold standard. Given the costs and potential complications, there is growing interest in the use of non-invasive screening methods. Thus, we have conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the role of speckle-tracking echocardiography as a screening method for ACR. We searched PubMed (CENTRAL) and gray literature for studies presenting data on speckle tracking echocardiography in heart-transplant patients experiencing acute cellular rejection. The primary outcomes of the meta-analysis were left and right ventricular global longitudinal strain. We used random effects models for all our calculations. We pre-registered our meta-analysis with PROSPERO (CRD42024508654). By incorporating data from over 2000 biopsies included in 18 studies, we found that both left (LVGLS, MD -1.96, 95% CI -2.85 to -1.07, p < 0.0001), and right (RVGLS, MD -2.90, 95% CI -4.03 to -1.76, p < 0.00001) ventricular longitudinal strain were lower among patients without ACR. The change of LVGLS from baseline over time was also greater among patients experiencing ACR (MD -2.43, 95% CI -4.82 to -0.05, p = 0.045). Current data suggest that myocardial strain measured by speckle tracking echocardiography is affected in ACR and could potentially be used for early rejection detection as a rule-out strategy, leading to reduction of routine EMB in heart transplant follow-up.

Indexed as

EchocardiographyGraft RejectionHeart TransplantationVentricular Function, LeftVentricular Function, RightAcute DiseaseAdultBiopsyFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPredictive Value of TestsRisk FactorsTime FactorsTreatment OutcomeAcute cellular rejectionCardiac transplantationEchocardiographyEndomyocardial biopsySpeckle-trackingStrain

Identifiers

PMID39636336
PMCPMC11982111

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.