Quantification by Speckle Tracking at Rest and During Stress

The introduction of speckle tracking imaging and the opportunity to objectify regional myocardial function in an angle-independent fashion has opened a wide array of opportunities. Quantitative echocardiography is likely to reduce intra-observer variability and shorten learning curves and this will allow broader use of these new imaging modalities in clinical routine and for research purposes. Tissue Doppler is used for deformation imaging, but has disadvantages that can be overcome with 2D speckle tracking. This article briefly summarises the technical details of 2D speckle tracking (strain and strain rate) and gives an overview on current and potential future applications of this new technique at rest and during stress.