Left atrial size and left ventricular function in coronary artery disease: An echocardiographic-angiographic correlative study

M-mode echocardiography was used to determine left atrial size in 100 patients with coronary artery disease undergoing cardiac catheterization. Patients were divided in two groups on the basis of left atrial diameter (≥ 40 mm in 40 patients and 100 ml/M2) was observed in 13 patients with enlarged left atria compared to none with normal left atrial size (p 42 mm, only two had normal ejection fractions. The mean ejection fraction for patients with left atrial diameters <40 mm was 0.63 ± 0.13 compared to 0.41 ± 0.18 for those with diameters ≥40 mm (p < 0.001). The sensitivity, specificity, and predictive value for an enlarged left atrium in identifying an abnormal ejection fraction were, respectively, 71, 83, and 75%. These findings indicate that M-mode echocardiographic left atrial enlargement is a useful marker of advanced hemodynamic and anglographic abnormality in patients with coronary artery disease.