Review article: Clinical impact of non-cardiologist-performed transthoracic echocardiography in emergency medicine, intensive care medicine and anaesthesia

There is increased realisation of the emerging role of point‐of‐care transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) as ‘ultrasound‐assisted examination’, given the low sensitivity of clinical examination for cardiovascular pathologies and the time‐critical nature of these pathologies. There is evidence that p...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Emergency medicine Australasia 2013-02, Vol.25 (1), p.4-12
Main Authors: Haji, Darsim L, Royse, Alistair, Royse, Colin F
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anesthesia - methods
Critical Care - methods
critical illness
Echocardiography
emergency medical services
Emergency Medicine - methods
Heart Diseases - diagnostic imaging
Humans
point-of-care system
Point-of-Care Systems
transthoracic echocardiography
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Summary:There is increased realisation of the emerging role of point‐of‐care transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) as ‘ultrasound‐assisted examination’, given the low sensitivity of clinical examination for cardiovascular pathologies and the time‐critical nature of these pathologies. There is evidence that point‐of‐care TTE provides higher accuracy in patient assessment and management, with potential prognostic impact by assessing the severity of cardiac dysfunction and response to treatment. Point‐of‐care TTE is increasingly used by non‐cardiologists, as a diagnostic, screening or monitoring tool. The literature shows that TTE identifies new clinical findings, and conversely can accurately rule out clinically important pathologies. Recent reports have examined more advanced ultrasound devices and patients in the critical care settings of emergency medicine, intensive care and anaesthesia. The diagnostic capability of new portable devices is improving rapidly and outdating its predecessors, thereby improving confidence in echocardiography findings.
ISSN:1742-6731
1742-6723
DOI:10.1111/1742-6723.12033