Home›Calculators›Health›LV Calculator

LV Calculator

Health

Calculate left ventricular mass and LV mass index from echocardiogram wall thickness and chamber diameter measurements using the ASE/Devereux formula.

Reviewed by the thecalcu.com team · Last updated July 10, 2026

LVIDd (End-Diastole)
cm
PWTd (Posterior Wall)
cm
SWTd (Septal Wall)
cm
Sex
Height
cm
Weight
kg

LV Mass

0g

LV Hypertrophy Check

—

LV Mass Index0 g/m²
Body Surface Area0 m²

Not a substitute for clinical interpretation. LV mass should be interpreted alongside the full echocardiogram report by a cardiologist.

What is a LV Mass?

The LV Calculator computes left ventricular (LV) mass and LV mass index from standard echocardiogram measurements, the LV internal diameter and septal and posterior wall thicknesses, all measured at end-diastole, using the validated ASE/Devereux formula. It also calculates body surface area (via the Mosteller formula) to index LV mass for a fair, size-adjusted comparison against normal ranges.

Enter your echocardiogram measurements below to see your estimated LV mass, LV mass index, and hypertrophy check. For a related valve-disease tool, see the Aortic Valve Area Calculator; for a stand-alone body size calculation, see the Body Surface Area Calculator.

Why Use an LV Calculator?

The ASE/Devereux formula involves cubing a sum of three measurements and subtracting a cubed diameter before scaling, an easy calculation to get wrong by hand, especially before then dividing by body surface area to get the indexed value. This calculator performs all of these steps instantly and shows each one clearly.

It's useful for cardiology and sonography students learning how echocardiogram measurements translate into LV mass, and for anyone reviewing their own echo report who wants to understand how the reported LV mass figure was derived.

Who Should Use This Calculator?

Cardiology, sonography, and internal medicine students studying echocardiographic chamber quantification can use this tool to check worked LV mass calculations against the published ASE/Devereux formula. Patients who have received an echocardiogram report listing LVIDd, PWTd, and SWTd measurements and want to understand how their LV mass figure was calculated may also find this a useful educational reference.

This calculator is for informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for a cardiologist's interpretation of a complete echocardiogram. LV mass and hypertrophy findings must always be assessed alongside the full study and clinical context by a qualified healthcare provider.

What Insights Does the LV Calculator Give You?

LV Mass is the primary result, the estimated mass of the left ventricle in grams, based on the ASE/Devereux formula.

LV Mass Index adjusts that mass for body size using body surface area, allowing comparison against standard sex-specific normal ranges. Body Surface Area shows the underlying size calculation, and LV Hypertrophy Check flags whether the indexed mass falls at or above the normal threshold for the selected sex.

How to use this LV Mass calculator

  1. Enter LVIDd, the LV internal diameter at end-diastole, in centimeters.
  2. Enter PWTd, the posterior wall thickness at end-diastole, in centimeters.
  3. Enter SWTd, the septal wall thickness at end-diastole, in centimeters.
  4. Select Sex, since normal LV mass index thresholds differ between men and women.
  5. Enter Height and Weight to calculate body surface area.
  6. Review your LV Mass, LV Mass Index, and LV Hypertrophy Check, and discuss the result with your cardiologist.
Show formula & methodology ↓Show less ↑

Formula & Methodology

The ASE/Devereux formula estimates LV mass as:

LV Mass (g) = 0.8 × {1.04 × [(LVIDd + PWTd + SWTd)³ − LVIDd³]} + 0.6

Body surface area uses the Mosteller formula: BSA (m²) = √[(Height (cm) × Weight (kg)) ÷ 3600]

LV Mass Index (g/m²) = LV Mass ÷ Body Surface Area

Normal LV mass index is generally considered under 95 g/m² for women and under 115 g/m² for men; values at or above these thresholds indicate LV hypertrophy, per American Society of Echocardiography chamber quantification guidelines.

Worked example: A patient with LVIDd 4.8 cm, PWTd 0.9 cm, SWTd 0.9 cm, height 170 cm, and weight 75 kg has a sum of diameters of 6.6 cm, giving an LV mass of approximately 148 g. With a body surface area of about 1.88 m², the LV mass index is approximately 79 g/m², well under both the female threshold of 95 g/m² and the male threshold of 115 g/m², indicating a normal LV mass in this example, consistent with the Devereux et al. 1986 formula.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the LV Calculator measure?
It calculates left ventricular (LV) mass and LV mass index from standard echocardiogram measurements, the LV internal diameter and the septal and posterior wall thicknesses, all measured at end-diastole. LV mass index further adjusts for body size using body surface area, allowing comparison against standard normal ranges.
What is the ASE/Devereux formula?
It's a validated formula for estimating LV mass from linear echocardiographic measurements, derived by Devereux RB, et al. (American Journal of Cardiology, 1986;57(6):450-458) and endorsed in American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) chamber quantification guidelines. It treats the left ventricle as a simplified geometric shape (a prolate ellipsoid) to estimate muscle mass from wall thickness and chamber size.
Why does LV mass need to be indexed to body size?
A larger person naturally has a larger heart, so raw LV mass in grams isn't directly comparable between people of different sizes. Dividing by body surface area (LV mass index) allows a fair comparison against standard normal ranges regardless of a patient's height and weight.
What are the normal LV mass index ranges?
Commonly cited normal ranges are under 95 g/m² for women and under 115 g/m² for men, based on American Society of Echocardiography chamber quantification guidelines. Values at or above these thresholds suggest left ventricular hypertrophy, though your cardiologist will interpret this alongside your full echocardiogram.
What causes left ventricular hypertrophy?
Common causes include long-standing high blood pressure, aortic valve disease, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and intense athletic training (athlete's heart), each with different patterns and clinical implications. The cause is determined by your cardiologist based on your full clinical picture, not just the LV mass number alone.
Which body surface area formula does this calculator use?
This calculator uses the Mosteller formula, the square root of (height in cm × weight in kg ÷ 3600), which is widely used in echocardiography reporting because of its simplicity and accuracy across a broad range of body sizes.
Can I use measurements from my own echo report?
If your echocardiogram report lists LVIDd, PWTd, and SWTd (or similarly labeled end-diastolic measurements), you can enter them here to see the calculated LV mass and index. Always confirm any unusual result with your cardiologist rather than relying on this calculator alone.
Is this calculator a substitute for my cardiologist's interpretation?
This calculator is for informational and educational purposes only. LV mass is just one part of a comprehensive echocardiogram assessment, and only a cardiologist reviewing the complete study, including chamber function and valve findings, can properly interpret what an elevated LV mass means for you.
Does this calculator account for LV mass measured by other imaging methods?
No, this calculator specifically uses the linear (M-mode or 2D-guided) echocardiographic measurement method behind the ASE/Devereux formula. Cardiac MRI and other 3D imaging techniques can provide more precise LV mass estimates using different calculation methods not covered here.
How does this relate to the Body Surface Area Calculator in this same tool set?
This calculator internally computes body surface area using the Mosteller formula as part of deriving the LV mass index; for a stand-alone BSA calculation for other clinical uses, see the [Body Surface Area Calculator](/body-surface-area-calculator/).
Is LV mass related to cardiac output or cardiac index?
They measure different things, LV mass reflects the amount of heart muscle tissue, while cardiac output and the [Cardiac Index Calculator](/cardiac-index-calculator/) reflect how much blood the heart pumps per minute. Both may be assessed together in a comprehensive cardiac evaluation but answer different clinical questions.
Does aortic valve disease affect LV mass?
Yes, conditions like aortic stenosis, assessed by tools such as the [Aortic Valve Area Calculator](/aortic-valve-area-calculator/), can cause the left ventricle to thicken over time in response to the extra workload, which can increase LV mass. Your cardiologist may track both measurements together when following aortic valve disease.
Also known as
left ventricular mass calculatorLV mass index calculatorDevereux formula calculatorechocardiography LV mass calculatorASE LV mass calculator