Two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography of acute cardiac transplant rejection following pregnancy.

A 44-year-old woman, who had undergone orthotopic cardiac transplantation in 1999, presented acute allograft rejection 4 months after childbirth. Analysis of myocardial deformation by speckle tracking echocardiography showed, in contrast with traditional markers of systolic function, a strong reduction of left ventricular strain, which recovered, together with rejection, under pharmacological treatment. This case documents the potential advantages of speckle tracking echocardiography in the noninvasive management of transplant recipients.