RESULTS
Twenty-nine patients (28%) had LVZs >1.0 cm2 on the LA wall at the LA-ascending aorta contact area (LVZ Group); no LVZs were seen in the other 73 patients (No LVZ Group). In the LVZ Group (vs. No LVZ Group), the aorta-LA angle was smaller (21.0±7.7° vs. 24.9±7.1°, P = 0.015), the aorta-left ventricle (LV) angle was greater (131.3±8.8° vs. 126.0±7.9°; P = 0.005), non-coronary cusp (NCC) diameter was greater (20.4±2.2 mm vs. 19.3±2.5 mm; P = 0.036), and the NCC was closer to the anterior LA wall (2.29±0.68 mm vs. 2.76±0.79 mm; P = 0.006). The aorta-LA angle correlated positively with patients’ body mass index (BMI) and negatively with body weight and BMI.