Why Dyssynchrony Matters in Heart Failure?

Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is an electrical therapy to resolve an electrical problem. Any method to predict CRT response must specifically reflect the electrical substrate. Time-to-peak dyssynchrony is too unspecific for prediction of response because dyssynchrony by this approach may reflect the presence of scar or fibrosis even in the absence of conduction delay. New methods are based on the actual physiology of activation delay–induced heart failure (HF) and are superior to time-to-peak methods in predicting CRT response. Time-to-peak dyssynchrony may be used for prognosis in HF patients without signs of delayed ventricular activation and for monitoring CRT response.