Exercise CMR right heart disease
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Assessment of Cardiac Function in patients with right heart disease by combining Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Imaging with Exercise Testing
IRAS ID
343485
Contact name
Daniel Knight
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Royal Free Hospital NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
5 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Disease of the right heart is associated with symptoms of breathlessness and exercise limitation and is associated with a poor prognosis despite current medical interventions and drug therapy. There is a range of outcomes for patients with right heart disease, the variables of which are currently poorly understood, partly because it is less common than left heart disease. It is known from previous research that combining exercise testing with 3D imaging of heart function (using the method of cardiac MRI), has been shown to be beneficial to understand the pathophysiology and prognostic determinants in other types of cardiovascular disease and understand exercise intolerance. This study will apply the techniques of combining exercise testing with Cardiac MRI (CMR) in patients with right heart disease, with the aim to understand more about a range of conditions that affect the right heart, learn more about the best methods to assess the response of the heart and tissues to exercise and how we can use this data to guide clinical decision making to improve patient care and outcomes.
For this study we will be identifying patients from 2 centres; The Pulmonary Hypertension Service and Rheumatology service at the Royal Free Hospital London, and secondly, patients under the care of the Grown Up Congenital Heart Disease service at St Bartholomew's Hospital London. Patients will have their consent and clinical assessments at a single site, our CMR research unit at the Royal Free Hospital.
During this cross-sectional study, patients will be having cardiac MRI scans, whilst simultaneously exercising, allowing us understand how cardiac function changes under exercise.
Patients with Pulmonary Hypertension (PH) and systemic sclerosis attending for clinical resting CMRs will undergo a rapid exercise study using our novel pipes ergometer. The purpose of this study is prognostication of PH using a rapid exercise protocol and novel device in large cohorts of patients with PH.
Patients with Tetralogy or Fallot or pectus excavatum will undergo CMR Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CMR PET). The purpose of this study arm is to interrogate patterns of exercise pathophysiology and exercise intolerance versus healthy controls.REC name
East of England - Cambridge South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/EE/0187
Date of REC Opinion
21 Oct 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion