Left atrium is often overlooked compared with left ventricular. However, the left atrial function plays a critical role in the prognosis of patient of cardiovascular events. conventional echocardiography detect left atrium dysfunction through mono-dimensional left atrial diameter quantification、bi-dimensional areas and volume estimation. The conventional parameters are often normal in early stage of the diseases, so there are some limits in evaluating the left atrial function early. Recently, with the progress of the echocardiography, especially three-dimensional speckle tracking imaging，it allows discover the change of left atrial function before anatomical alteration occurs and has great values in the diagnosis of the cardiovascular disease early and assessing the prognosis of diseases，The role of 3D-STI in evaluating left atrial function were reviewed in this article