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The following is a summary of “Right atrial reservoir strain as an early predictor of pulmonary hypertension development in Systemic Sclerosis: a single center pilot study,” published in the April 2025 issue of Rheumatology by Codullo et al. 

Regular screening for pulmonary hypertension (PH) is essential in systemic sclerosis (SSc) for early pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) detection. Right atrial (RA) function may reflect early right heart overload from pulmonary pressure rise. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to assess RA reservoir strain as a marker of early right heart overload and predictor of PH in SSc. 

They enrolled 113 patients with SSc from May 2010 to April 2022 who underwent echocardiography, including systolic pulmonary artery pressure (PASP), the measurement of tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE), TAPSE/PASP, and RARs measurements. 

The results showed that during a median follow-up of 43 months, 11 patients underwent RHC and PH were confirmed in 10. RARs was the only independent predictor of PH (HR 0.85, 95% CI 0.75–0.96, P=0.01). The optimal RARs cut-off was 39.6 (AUC 0.7, P=0.04, sensitivity 70%, specificity 60%). 

Investigators found that RARs were a sensitive echocardiographic parameter to predict PH development in patients with SSc. 

Source: academic.oup.com/rheumatology/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/rheumatology/keae628/8109436