Age-related features of left ventricular myocardial deformation in patients with grade 1 essential hypertension

Essential hypertension may induce subclinical left ventricular (LV) myocardial dysfunction before a detectable reduction in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) occurs. Two-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography (2D-STE), particularly global longitudinal strain (GLS), enables the detection of subtle abnormalities in myocardial deformation despite preserved LVEF. However, the contribution of age to LV deformation abnormalities in patients with mild hypertension remains insufficiently characterized.