Recent advances in cardiac resynchronization therapy: echocardiographic modalities, patient selection, optimization, non-responders--all you need to know for more efficient CRT.

Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) constitutes an established way of treatment for patients suffering from severe heart failure. However, this technologically based and expensive mode of therapy may not be effective for a substantial number of individuals. Recent research and advanced echocardiographic modalities have provided new insight on the proper patient selection, lead implantation, optimization and reasons for non-response. Based on this evidence, an overall assessment of parameters that appear to contribute significantly to the outcome of CRT in addition to electrical or mechanical dyssynchrony, seems to be a reasonable approach for more effective resynchronization therapy.