Alterations in Cardiac Deformation, Timing of Contraction and Relaxation, and Early Myocardial Fibrosis Accompany the Apparent Recovery of Acute Stress-Induced (Takotsubo) Cardiomyopathy: An End to the Concept of Transience

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Takotsubo syndrome is an increasingly recognized cause of chest pain and occasionally of cardiogenic shock. Despite rapid improvement of the left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction, recent registry data raise concerns about long-term prognosis. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that restoration of normal ejection fraction after acute takotsubo syndrome is not equivalent to full functional recovery. METHODS: Fifty-two patients with takotsubo syndrome (according to the Mayo Clinic criteria plus cardiac magnetic resonance imaging to exclude myocardial infarction) and 44 healthy control subjects of the same age, gender, and cardiovascular comorbidity distribution were ..