To study relaxation characteristics of the infarcted myocardium, cyclic changes in the global left ventricular (LV) volume were measured in 20 patients with old myocardial infarction (OMI) and 17 normals (Normal) and those in the regional segment length were measured in 9 patients with anterior old myocardial infarction (anterior OMI) and 11 normals. The LV volume was calculated by using biplane LV cineangiograms. The regional segment length was calculated by measuring the spatial length between the 2 points of the ramifying branches on the left coronary arteries by using biplane coronary cineangiograms. The LV filling volume before atrial contraction (VR) was significantly less in the OMI compared with that in the normals (Normal 38 +/- 6 (mean +/- SD) ml/m2 vs 30 +/- 7 ml/m2: p less than 0.01), while filling volume by atrial contraction (Va) did not significantly differ (Normal 15 +/- 4 ml/m2 vs OMI 17 +/- 5 ml/m2). The lengthening of the segmental wall during diastole before atrial contraction (%LR) in the infarcted portion was 5.0 +/- 2.9% which was also significantly less than that in the non-infarcted portion (9.6 +/- 4.2%). The extent of lengthening by atrial contraction (%La) did not differ between the 2 portions (non-infarcted portion 3.8 +/- 1.1% vs infarcted portion 3.5 +/- 1.2%). Reduction of %LR was speculated to be caused by the incomplete relaxation in the myocardium adjacent to the infarcted portion and stiff myocardium in the infarcted portion. This study suggests that the infarcted myocardium may lead to a reduction of diastolic expansion before atrial contraction.