TAS-ELF (Tasmanian Study of Echocardiographic detection of Left ventricular dysfunction) study
.The TAS-ELF (TAsmanian Study of Echocardiographic detection of Left ventricular dysfunction) study is a randomised trial to explore the benefits of screening selected patients at risk of developing heart failure. We will do this with a special new imaging technique (strain imaging), in which we at Menzies have special expertise. It is being supported by the Tasmanian Community Fund and we are seeking funding from the National Health & Medical Research Council to extend this nationally.
Heart failure (HF) is a problem that is assuming epidemic proportions, especially among the elderly and commonly in rural environments. Unfortunately, its clinical diagnosis is associated with late-stage disease, which has a poor prognosis and responds poorly to medical therapy. At present, there is no effective strategy for identifying and preventing HF, with the result that patients present late in the course of the disease where hospitalisation is inevitable and treatment responses are poor. Screening of "at risk" patients with a combination of clinical scores and echo imaging is able to identify patients who are liable to develop HF. However, the application of this in a rural environment has not been attempted and the implications of the identification of subclinical HF for preventive treatment in this setting are undefined.
The question that now needs to be answered is whether surveillance with GLS could change HF outcomes in at risk patients. We anticipate that the prompt initiation of therapy in these patients that are recognized to have the earliest phase of HF, will result in improvement in their functional capacity, and arrest in the subsequent progression to HF.
Who we are looking for:
People aged 65 years and older with:
Diabetes, high blood pressure, major weight problems, past chemotherapy for cancer or coronary disease. But not with a history of heart failure
More information is available on the Information Sheet (PDF 171.8KB).
Contact: menzies.taself@utas.edu.au
This project is a participant based study.
Research Groups
Related Diseases
Staff
Team Leaders
Team Members
- Associate Professor Leigh Blizzard
- Associate Professor James Sharman
- Dr Kazuaki Negishi
- Leah Wright
- Hilda Yang
Local Collaborators
- Dr Emil Djakic (Ulverstone)
- Dr Tim Flanagan (Longford)
- Dr Michael Lees (Oatlands)
- Dr Tim Mooney (Georgetown)
- Dr Jenny Ostenfeld (Smithton)
- Dr Bastian Seidel (Huon Valley)
Publications from this study
Publications from this study are accessible through this link: https://rmdb.research.utas.edu.au/public/rmdb/q/indiv_detail_warp_trans/34211 or can be accessed individually through the links below.
Yang H, Wang Y, Negishi K, Nolan M, Marwick TH. Pathophysiological effects of different risk factors for heart failure. Open Heart. 2016;3(1):e000339.
Yang H, Wang Y, Nolan M, Negishi K, Okin PM, Marwick TH. Community Screening for Nonischemic Cardiomyopathy in Asymptomatic Subjects ≥65 Years With Stage B Heart Failure. Am J Cardiol. 2016 Jun 15;117(12):1959-1965.
Yang H, Negishi K, Wang Y, Nolan M, Saito M, Marwick TH. Echocardiographic screening for non-ischaemic stage B heart failure in the community. Eur J Heart Fail. 2016 Nov;18(11):1331-1339.
Wang Y, Yang H, Nolan M, Negishi K, Burgess J, Marwick TH. Association of waist circumference with impaired six-minute walk in type 2 diabetes mellitus is independent of cardiac function. J Diabetes Complications. 2016 Apr;30(3):542-4.
Ramkumar S, Yang H, Wang Y, Nolan M, Negishi K, Sanders P, Marwick TH. Relation of Functional Status to Risk of Development of Atrial Fibrillation. Am J Cardiol. 2017 Feb 15;119(4):572-578. doi: 10.1016/j.amjcard.2016.10.043.
Negishi K, Yang H, Wang Y, Nolan MT, Negishi T, Pathan F, Marwick TH, Sharman JE. Importance of Calibration Method in Central Blood Pressure for Cardiac Structural Abnormalities. Am J Hypertens. 2016 Sep;29(9):1070-6.
Yang H, Marwick TH, Wang Y, Nolan M, Negishi K, Khan F, Okin PM. Association between Electrocardiographic and Echocardiographic Markers of Stage B Heart Failure and Cardiovascular Outcome. ESC heart failure. 2017;In Press.
Yang H, Negishi K, Wang Y, Nolan M, Marwick T. Imaging-Guided Cardioprotective Treatment in a Community Elderly Population of Stage B Heart Failure. JACC Cardiovascular Imaging. 2017;In Press.