Assessment of cardiac structural and functional changes in patients with Parkinson's disease by CMR-FT: a pilot study

Motivation: To evaluate the changes of cardiac structure and function in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Goal(s): To evaluate the structural and functional changes of left heart in PD patients by cardiac magnetic resonance feature tracking (CMR-FT), and to explore the influencing factors of left heart structure and function. Approach: Cardiac function and strain parameters of left heart were obtained, and the correlation between CMR parameters and motor dysfunction and autonomic dysfunction was evaluated. Results: Left atrium reserve and conduction function are related to the severity of motor dysfunction and autonomic dysfunction. CMR-FT can detect the early changes of cardiac function in PD patients. Impact: The prevalence of heart failure has been twice among Parkinson's Disease patients compared with overall population. Cardiac magnetic resonance feature tracking technology can be used as an effective tool for early diagnosis of cardiac dysfunction in Parkinson's Disease patients.