Prevalence, Clinical Correlates, and Prognosis of Discrete Upper Septal Thickening on Echocardiography: The Framingham Heart Study

The upper interventricular septum may be prominent in elderly individuals, a finding referred to as discrete upper septal thickening (DUST). We examined the prevalence, clinical and echocardiographic correlates, and prognostic significance of DUST in a community-based sample. We evaluated Framingham Study participants who underwent routine echocardiography. In 3562 Framingham Study participants (mean age 58 years, 57% women), DUST was observed in 52 participants. The clinical correlates of DUST were: increasing age (odds ratio [OR] per 10 year increment 2.59, 95% confidence intervals [CI] 1.64-4.08), and systolic blood pressure (OR per SD increment 1.55, 95% CI 1.15-2.09). DUST was positively associated with left ventricular (LV) fractional shortening and mitral annular calcification but inversely with LV diastolic dimensions (p 0.30 for both). The follow-up component of our study suggests that DUST is not independently associated with adverse prognosis.