Automated mitral annular tracking: A novel method for evaluating mitral annular motion using two-dimensional echocardiography

We developed an automated mitral annular tracking method based on a digital processing of high frame rate cineloop images of 2-dimensional echocardiography. In this study, its feasibility and accuracy was validated in 11 healthy volunteers and 16 patients with left ventricular (LV) dysfunction. The mitral annular excursion measured by automated mitral annular tracking agreed well with that measured by 3-dimensional echocardiography and correlated with LV ejection fraction. The longitudinal mitral annular excursion was reduced whereas the radial one was preserved for patients with LV dysfunction compared with control subjects. The novel automated mitral annular tracking method is clinically feasible and has potential capability to quantify the comprehensive mitral annular motion for evaluating LV function in a clinical setting.