![]() Recognized as the "Father of Echocardiography", the Swedish physician Inge Edler (1911–2001), a graduate of Lund University, was the first of his profession to apply ultrasonic pulse echo imaging in diagnosing cardiac disease, which the acoustical physicist Floyd Firestone had developed to detect defects in metal castings. Echocardiography is performed by cardiac sonographers, cardiac physiologists (UK), or physicians trained in echocardiography. The Doppler technique can also be used for tissue motion and velocity measurement, by tissue Doppler echocardiography.Įchocardiography was also the first ultrasound subspecialty to use intravenous contrast. Color Doppler, as well as spectral Doppler, is used to visualize any abnormal communications between the left and right sides of the heart, any leaking of blood through the valves (valvular regurgitation), and estimate how well the valves open (or do not open in the case of valvular stenosis). This allows assessment of both normal and abnormal blood flow through the heart. Not only can an echocardiogram create ultrasound images of heart structures, but it can also produce accurate assessment of the blood flowing through the heart by Doppler echocardiography, using pulsed- or continuous-wave Doppler ultrasound. ![]() The biggest advantage of echocardiography is that it is not invasive (does not involve breaking the skin or entering body cavities) and has no known risks or side effects. The use of stress echocardiography may also help determine whether any chest pain or associated symptoms are related to heart disease. Įchocardiography can help detect cardiomyopathies, such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and dilated cardiomyopathy. Also, it is important in treatment and follow-up in patients with heart failure, by assessing ejection fraction. It is a tool which helps in reaching an early diagnosis of myocardial infarction, showing regional wall motion abnormality. An echocardiogram can also give physicians other estimates of heart function, such as a calculation of the cardiac output, ejection fraction, and diastolic function (how well the heart relaxes).Įchocardiography is an important tool in assessing wall motion abnormality in patients with suspected cardiac disease. It can provide a wealth of helpful information, including the size and shape of the heart (internal chamber size quantification), pumping capacity, location and extent of any tissue damage, and assessment of valves. It is one of the most widely used diagnostic imaging modalities in cardiology. The visual image formed using this technique is called an echocardiogram, a cardiac echo, or simply an echo.Įchocardiography is routinely used in the diagnosis, management, and follow-up of patients with any suspected or known heart diseases. It is a type of medical imaging, using standard ultrasound or Doppler ultrasound. Echocardiography, also known as cardiac ultrasound, is the use of ultrasound to examine the heart.
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