Background Health care systems are increasingly moving toward models that emphasize the delivery of high-quality health care at lower costs. Rates of repeat echocardiography (two or more transthoracic echocardiographic studies…
Background Mitral valve (MV) repair is the procedure of choice for patients with degenerative MV disease (DMVD) with severe mitral regurgitation. The aim of this study was to identify specific…
Background Intersocietal Accreditation Commission Echocardiography accreditation involves a broad-based evaluation of a given echocardiography facility’s daily operation. An in-depth analysis of the most frequent noncompliant accreditation items provides learning opportunities…
Background Speckle-tracking echocardiographic (STE) measures of right ventricular (RV) function appear to improve after transcatheter pulmonary valve implantation (TPVI). Measures of exercise function, such as ventilatory efficiency (the minute ventilation…
Cardiovascular imaging procedures have consistently ranked among the most costly of Medicare services. Although reimbursement for an echocardiographic examination is decidedly lower than that for other cardiovascular imaging services, nearly…
Background Ventricular septal defect (VSD) is the most common congenital cardiac anomaly. Accurate assessment is critical for planning treatment. Recent advances in three-dimensional (3D) echocardiography have improved image quality and…
Background Doppler tissue imaging (DTI) has been used to evaluate myocardial velocity during ventricular filling, a means of characterizing diastolic function. Previous studies in older children have shown age-related increases…
Background Predischarge (pre-d/c) transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) is routine after surgery for congenital heart disease, but how it affects clinical care is unknown. The aim of this study was to test…
Introduction Document Development Process The Society of Pediatric Cardiology Training Program Directors (SPCTPD) board assembled a steering committee that nominated 2 chairs, 1 SPCTPD steering committee member, and 4 additional…
Daniel P. Bourque, MS, RCS, FASE Echosonographers get hurt. A lot. According to a 2008 study by Coffin, 90% of us report incidence of muscular skeletal injuries. By picking up…
