Objective .– Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) has been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study is to assess left ventricular (LV) function in asymptomatic patients with SLE.

Methods .– We included 58 female SLE patients without symptoms or signs of heart failure or angina (group I), and 58 healthy female subjects (group II). The 2 groups had similar mean age, mean blood pressure and body mass index. All included subjects had no evidence of valvular or ischemic heart diseases. We used standard echocardiography and tissue Doppler imaging (TDI).

Results .– There is no difference in conventional indices of global LV function. However, we observed lower mitral annulus systolic velocities measured by TDI suggesting subclinical LV systolic dysfunction (3.5 ± 1 cm/s vs. 7.8 ± 0.9 cm/s, P < 0.01). We also find impaired diastolic function with lower mitral annulus early diastolic velocities Em (7.2 ± 1.1 cm/s vs. 11.7 ± 1.8 cm/s, P < 0.01) and higher ratio of transmitral E wave velocities to Em velocities (12.2 ± 1.9 vs. 7.4 ± 1.2; P < 0.01). Among SLE patients, impaired LV systolic and diastolic indices are significantly pronounced in the subgroup with longer disease duration (> 10 years).

Conclusion .– This study shows the presence of LV systolic and diastolic dysfunction in asymptomatic SLE patients. Tissue Doppler imaging may provide a useful tool to monitor the disease process and treatment response of this subclinical myocardial dysfunction.