Baseline participant characteristics
The baseline characteristics for all patients are as listed in Table I. We recruited 183 patients of whom 34 studies had to be subsequently excluded from the analysis due to poor echocardiographic image quality (Figure I). No significant differences in patient demographics were found between those included in the analysis and those excluded from the study. The mean age of the study population was 59.7(9.5) years of whom 52% were male, 11% were diabetics, 56% had dyslipidemia and 39% had hypertension. The measured median septal mitral annular e’ was 7.6 cm/s [6.2, 8.9] while the measured median septal mitral annular E/e’ was 9.5 [7.5, 10.8]. In addition, the measured mean Hs-CRP was 2.6 [0.7, 3.0]. Elevated LV filling pressures (septal mitral annular E/e’ ratio ≥ 15) were present in a total of 10 (6.7%) patients. Five out of the 10 patients with elevated LV filling pressures had evidence of CMD. Only age was the significant predictor for elevated LV filling pressures (Table II) with an odds ratio of 1.07 (95% CI [1.03, 1.13], p=0.001).