Effect of surgical treatment on myocardial strain in patients with pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma: a mini-review and meta-analysis

Aim: Information on systolic dysfunction, as assessed by left-ventricular (LV) mechanics, in patients with pheochromocytoma after surgical treatment is scanty. We performed a systematic meta-analysis of speckle tracking echocardiographic studies to provide an updated comprehensive information on this issue. Methods: The PubMed, OVID-MEDLINE, and Cochrane library databases were analyzed to search for articles published from the inception up to May 31st 2021. Studies were identified using MeSH terms and crossing the following search items: “myocardial strain” “left ventricular mechanics”, “speckle tracking echocardiography”, “systolic dysfunction”, “pheochromocytoma”, and “paraganglioma”. Results: A total of 92 surgically treated patients with pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma were included in 3 longitudinal studies. Successful surgical treatment was associated with a decrease in relative wall thickness (SMD − 0.25 ± 0.10, CI − 0.45/− 0.05, p < 0.01) and an improvement in global longitudinal strain (SMD − 0.45 ± 0.10, CI − 0.66/− 0.24, p < 0.0001). The favorable effects of treatment on LV geometry and mechanics were not accompanied by significant changes in ejection fraction (SMD − 0.07 ± 0.10, CI − 0.27/0.12, p = 0.44). Conclusions: This meta-analysis adds a new piece of evidence, suggesting that surgical treatment of patients with pheochromocytoma impacts favorably on LV geometry and LV mechanics, and, more importantly, the assessment of LV changes in this setting can no longer rely on conventional echocardiographic parameters such as ejection fraction.