Radionuclide esophageal transit test to detect esophageal disorders in patients with mitral valve prolapse

Aim: The origin of chest discomfort in patients with mitral valve prolapse (MVP) is controversial. Our aim was to prospectively determine the incidenc e of esophageal disorders in MVP patients with or without chest pain. Metho ds: Twenty-five MVP patients with chest pain (group A) and 25 MVP patients without chest pain (group B) underwent evaluation of esophageal motility. N one of the total of 50 MVP patients had significant coronary artery disease on cardiac catheterization, Esophageal motility including esophageal mean transit time (MTT), residual fraction (RF), and retrograde index (RI) was a nalyzed by the radionuclide esophageal transit test (RETT). Results: In com parison with 25 age and sex-matched healthy volunteers, the results showed that: (1) 19 patients in group A (76%) had abnormal RETT findings (48% of c ases with prolonged MTT, 44% of loses with higher RF, and 60% of cases with higher RD; (2) 3 patients in group B (12%) had abnormal RETT findings (8% of cases with prolonged MIT, 4% of cases with higher RF, and 8% of cases wi th higher RI). In addition, mean values of MTI RF, and Ri in group A patien ts were significantly higher than in group B patients and healthy volunteer s. Conclusion: We found that the chest pain in some MVP patients may be rel ated to abnormal esophageal motility, based on the evidence from a simple a nd noninvasive RETT.