Cardiovascular imaging in Turner syndrome: state-of-the-art practice across the lifespan

Heart. 2018 Nov;104(22):1823-1831. doi: 10.1136/heartjnl-2017-312658. Epub 2018 Sep 18.

Abstract

Cardiovascular imaging is essential to providing excellent clinical care for girls and women with Turner syndrome (TS). Congenital and acquired cardiovascular diseases are leading causes of the lifelong increased risk of premature death in TS. Non-invasive cardiovascular imaging is crucial for timely diagnosis and treatment planning, and a systematic and targeted imaging approach should combine echocardiography, cardiovascular magnetic resonance and, in select cases, cardiac CT. In recent decades, evidence has mounted for the need to perform cardiovascular imaging in all females with TS irrespective of karyotype and phenotype. This is due to the high incidence of outcome-determining lesions that often remain subclinical and occur in patterns specific to TS. This review provides an overview of state-of-the-art cardiovascular imaging practice in TS, by means of a review of the most recent literature, in the context of a recent consensus statement that has highlighted the role of cardiovascular diseases in these females.

Keywords: aortic and arterial disease; cardiac computer tomographic (ct) imaging; cardiac magnetic resonance (cmr) imaging; congenital heart disease; echocardiography.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Age Factors
  • Aortic Aneurysm / diagnostic imaging
  • Aortic Aneurysm / mortality
  • Aortic Dissection / diagnostic imaging
  • Aortic Dissection / mortality
  • Cardiac Imaging Techniques*
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / diagnostic imaging*
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / mortality
  • Cause of Death
  • Comorbidity
  • Female
  • Heart Defects, Congenital / diagnostic imaging
  • Heart Defects, Congenital / mortality
  • Heart Valve Diseases / diagnostic imaging
  • Heart Valve Diseases / mortality
  • Humans
  • Middle Aged
  • Predictive Value of Tests
  • Prevalence
  • Prognosis
  • Risk Factors
  • Turner Syndrome / diagnosis
  • Turner Syndrome / epidemiology*
  • Turner Syndrome / mortality
  • Young Adult