BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is extremely useful in surgeries like valvuloplasty, of the thoracic aorta, and correction of congenital cardiopathies. The low degree of invasiveness and the capacity to aggregate information that can change the course of the surgery are among the advantages of TEE. The objective of this report was to present a case in which the ...

Although transthoracic two-dimensional echocardiography can detect dilation of the coronary arteries, the reliability of this technique in the detection of coronary artery stenosis is still doubtful. The purpose of this study was to test the ability of newly developed biplane transesophageal color Doppler and two-dimensional echocardiography in the detection of left main coronary artery stenosi...

BACKGROUND The role of erythrocyte indexes for the prediction of left atrial stasis, assessed by transesophageal echocardiography in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation, has not been previously clarified. METHODS Single center cross-sectional study comprising 247 consecutive patients admitted to the emergency department due to symptomatic atrial fibrillation and undergoing transeso...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Transesophageal echocardiography has a high yield for detecting potential cardiac sources of embolism in patients with clinical risk factors for cardioembolism or unexplained stroke. The yield in other stroke subtypes is unknown. METHODS We classified 145 consecutively admitted patients into stroke subtypes based on clinical findings, brain imaging, and carotid ultrasou...

Early detection and prompt treatment are important factors that limit morbidity and mortality secondary to venous air embolism (VAE) (1). The precordial Doppler ultrasonic sensor and transesophageal echocardiograph are the two most sensitive monitors currently available to detect VAE (2,3). The Aloka SSD-870 transesophageal echocardiograph is equipped with a Doppler sensor at the distal end of ...

PURPOSE We sought to determine the appropriate use of echocardiography for patients with suspected endocarditis. PATIENTS AND METHODS We constructed a decision tree and Markov model using published data to simulate the outcomes and costs of care for patients with suspected endocarditis. RESULTS Transesophageal imaging was optimal for patients who had a prior probability of endocarditis that...

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES Low-gradient severe aortic stenosis with preserved ejection fraction is a controversial entity. Misclassification of valvulopathy severity could explain the inconsistencies reported in the prognosis of these patients. Planimetry of the aortic area using three-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography could clear up these doubts. The objectives were to assess the a...

Intraoperative formation and management of a thrombus in right atrium has been reported occasionally. Nevertheless, it is rare that a right atrial thrombus with unstable hemodynamic changes detected by transesophageal echocardiography is resolved spontaneously. We report upon the 44-year-old woman, who had a right atrial thrombus detected by transesophageal echocardiography during laparoscopic ...

A patient presenting with a history of palpitation and exertional dyspnea was initially diagnosed with two separate secundum-type atrial septal defects by transesophageal echocardiography. Subsequent transesophageal echocardiography, after failure of closure with two separate closure devices, showed another defect and an ongoing left to right shunt. During surgery, more defects were observed. T...

Pulmonary vein thrombosis is difficult to diagnose clinically and requires a combination of conventional diagnostic modalities. Transesophageal echocardiography was used in the present case to readily diagnose this entity and follow thrombus regression on anticoagulant therapy. This limited experience suggests that transesophageal echocardiography may be the initial diagnostic study of choice f...