Figure 1

Mean left atrial (LA) and right atrial (RA) kinetic energy (KE) over the cardiac cycle for all subjects. Error bars indicate SEM. Gray vertical lines differentiate between systole (S), early diastole (E), diastasis (D), and atrial contraction (A), respectively. Three energy peaks are seen: 1) systole, 2) early diastole, and 3) late diastole. During systole, RA KE is significantly larger than LA KE. The early diastolic peaks were similar between both atria, however the increase in KE from end systole to early diastole was markedly larger in the LA. The late diastolic peaks were caused by atrial contraction, and did not differ between the atria.