Global left ventricular function (LVF) and segmental wall motion of the left ventricle are registered in 113 patients presenting a pure mitral stenosis (MS) and in a control group of 50 individuals. The segmental wall motion is measured on the end-diastolic-end-systolic frames of the left ventricle, obtained from right anterior oblique (RAO) monoplane cineangiography. Measurement of the segmental wall shortening is performed using the Stanford method. Group 1 includes 68 patients (60% of the total number of patients studied). These patients show no pathological contraction abnormality. In this group, the global LVF is not different from the control group. Group 2 includes 45 patients (40% of the total) for whom contraction abnormalities are present: anterior hypokinesis in 20% of the cases (anterior area mean shortening (AAS) = 18 +/- 8%; p less than 0.001 vs. group 1 and control group), and posterior hypokinesis in 20% of the cases (posterior area mean shortening (PAS) = 9.8 +/- 5.8%, p less than 0.001 vs. group 1 and control group). In this group, global LVF is impaired; ejection fraction (EF) = 0.57 +/- 0.1% (p less than 0.001 vs. group 1); velocity of circumferential fiber shortening (VCF) = 1 +/- 0.3 circ/s (p less than 0.001 vs. group 1); enddiastolic pressure (EDP) = 11 +/- 5 mmHg (p less than 0.01 vs. group 1). Segmental contraction abnormalities appear to be the main factor involved in the global LVF impairment. Segmental wall motion abnormalities could be related to subvalvular fibrosis, or LV filling difficulties, or principally, to a possible interplay between the right and the left ventricles.