aortic stiffness and ventriculo - vascular coupling in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy.\

the present study aimed to assess the state of aortic stiffness utilizing transthoracic echocardoppler examination in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and different stages of heart failure & possible inter- relation between both of them.In our study, there were significant differences as regard heart rate between examined groups.In our study, there were significant difference as regard serum level of total cholesterol between examined groups.An important body of evidence links increased PWV,elevated PP, and premature/increased arterial wave reflections with a higher risk of CV morbidity and mortality. Aortic stiffness has independent predictive value for all-cause and CV mortalities.In our study, we used two different methods for assessment of aortic stiffness. The measurement of Pulse Wave Velocity (PWV) dependent equation is one that has been widely employed for a long time to evaluate arterial wall distensibility and stiffness. The second method was through assessment of ascending aorta wave velocities by Tissue Doppler Imaging (TDI).