Left Ventricular Systolic and Diastolic Function in Healthy Adult Bonnet Macaques (Macaca radiata) New Echocardiographic Indices in Old World Monkeys

Objectives: Macaques are used in cardiovascular and metabolic research. We determined echocardiographic-derived reference values of left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic function in healthy adult bonnet macaques (Macaca radiata). Methods: Transthoracic echocardiography was performed during ketamine sedation in 83 (67% female) healthy monkeys (age 7-26 years). Results: Technically adequate studies were obtained in all subjects and required 10.1 +/- 1.3 min of scanning time. Age correlated inversely with the following Doppler indices: E (r = -0.44, p < 0.001), E/A (r = -0.26, p = 0.02), E' (r = -0.45, p < 0.001, E'/A' (r = -0.44, p < 0.001), E/E' (r -0.25, p = 0.03), S' (r = -0.33, p = 0.003), Vp (r = -0.26, p = 0.049). LV mass was more strongly correlated with crown rump length (r = 0.72, p < 0.001) and body surface area (r = 0.70, p < 0.001) than with body mass index (r = 0.47, p < 0.001) and weight (r = 0.63, p < 0.001). Conclusions: This study demonstrates echocardiography is feasible for characterizing LV function. Age-related changes in Doppler indices in primates are similar to those in humans. LV mass is more closely related to fat-free mass indices. We provide reference values for LV systolic and diastolic function in adult bonnet macaques across the captive life span. Copyright (C) 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel