Small Left Ventricular Chamber Size and Mortality in a Large General Population

Enlargement of the left ventricle (LV) is an important marker of adverse cardiac remodeling and poor prognosis. Previous studies demonstrated increased cardiovascular risk in small subsets of patients with a small LV chamber size; however, the prognostic implications of small chamber size in the general population remains unclear. This study aimed to examine the prognosis of a small LV chamber in a large general cohort. All consecutive subjects who underwent echocardiography examinations from 2011 to 2023 were retrieved for analysis. Small chamber size was defined as end-diastolic diameter <42 mm for men and 37.8 mm for women as per American Society of Echocardiography guidelines. The primary end point for the study was all-cause mortality. A total of 46,529 subjects (mean age 60 ± 19 years, 56% men) were included, of whom 3,787 had a small LV chamber size. Clinical variables associated with small chamber included increasing age and lower body surface area. Echocardiographic variables included higher relative wall thickness and E/e' ratio. On the multivariable analysis, the presence of a small LV was significantly associated with mortality (hazard ratio [HR] 1.34, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.22 to 1.46, p <0.001). This finding was significant in older (over 65 years) (HR 1.30, 95% CI 1.19 to 1.41, p <0.001) and younger (HR 2.09, 95% CI 1.81 to 2.41, p <0.001) subjects and in men and women. In conclusion, in this retrospective large cohort study, small LV chamber size was significantly associated with mortality in a broad range of patients. Further study is necessary to elucidate mechanisms and design preventive strategies.