Direct measurement of left ventricular ejection time from echocardiographic posterior wall excursion time: validation of technique.

Echocardiography has proven useful in determining systolic time intervals. Left ventricular mean velocity of circumferential fiber shortening has been calculated utilizing the left ventricular ejection time measured in several manners, usually from the echocardiographic aortic valve opening time or indirect carotid pulse tracing. Left ventricular ejection time is related to the time of posterior wall excursion in patients without conduction defects or segmental wall motion abnormalities. Thus, a single echocardiographic view can measure ventricular diameters and approximate ejection time simultaneously without other echocardiographic or phonocardiographic measurements which may be cumbersome to obtain, particularly during dynamic echocardiographic studies.