Presentation
Shortness of breath.
Patient Data
This normal tagged short axis MRI cine loop through the mid ventricles shows clockwise rotation of the heart in systole and counterclockwise rotation in diastole.
Diagrams of 3 types of left ventricular motion.
Case Discussion
There are 3 types of left ventricular motion: shortening from apex to base, myocardial thickening and twisting. All 3 of these motions are illustrated in the diagrams. The MR cine loop shows the twisting motion. In early systole, the heart twists vigorously in a clockwise direction: this twisting motion contributes to the forceful ejection of a large volume of blood across the aortic valve during early systole. In early diastole, before the p-wave, the heart untwists in a counterclockwise direction. This motion "sucks" a large amount of blood across the mitral valve into the left ventricle, before atrial contraction.
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