Ventricular dysfunction is a significant clinical challenge in the long-term follow-up of patients with single ventricle (SV) physiology. Ventricular function and myocardial mechanics can be studied using speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE) which provides information on myocardial deformation. Limited information is available on serial changes in SV myocardial mechanics after the Fontan […]

In 2004 the American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) guidelines and standards for the performance of fetal echocardiography were published.1 The writing group, commissioned by the Pediatric Council of the ASE, provided a review of the medical literature as well as a summary of expert consensus to create a document that was much needed and served the fetal and pediatric echocardiography […]

Presented Monday, June 26, 8:00 AM-10:00 AM […]

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To assess differences in cardiac morphology and function at mid-gestation in fetuses from pregnancies that subsequently developed pre-eclampsia (PE) or gestational hypertension (GH). […]

Predicting left ventricular recovery (LVR) after acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is of prognostic importance. This study aims to explore the prognostic implications of segmental noninvasive myocardial work (MW) and microvascular perfusion (MVP) after STEMI. […]

Pulmonary embolism (PE) is the third most common cause of cardiovascular death in the United States. Appropriate risk stratification is an important component of the initial evaluation for acute management of these patients. Echocardiography plays a crucial role in the risk stratification of patients with PE. In this literature review, we describe the current strategies in risk stratification of […]

Exercise intolerance is the central symptom of heart failure (HF). In the growing subset of patients who have HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), three main hemodynamic mechanisms accounting for limited exercise capacity have been identified1,2: (1) chronotropic incompetence, or the inability to achieve an appropriate increase in heart rate during exertion; (2) an excessive rise in […]

In most people’s vocabularies, design means veneer. . . . But to me . . . design is the fundamental soul of a human-made creation that ends up expressing itself in successive outer layers of the product or service.—Steve Jobs […]

Large randomized controlled trials have shown the benefits of percutaneous closure of patent foramen ovale (PFO) in patients with cryptogenic stroke and PFO. Recent studies have highlighted the clinical significance and prognostic implication of various anatomical features of PFO and the adjacent atrial septum, such as atrial septal aneurysm (ASA), PFO size, large shunt, and hypermobility. […]

Hemostasis within the left atrial appendage (LAA) is a common cause of stroke, especially in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). Although LAA flow provides insights into LAA function, its potential for predicting AF has yet to be established. The aim of this study was to explore whether LAA peak flow velocities early after cryptogenic stroke are associated with future AF on prolonged rhythm […]

Morbidity and mortality for acute pulmonary embolism (PE) remain high. Therapies such as catheter directed thrombolysis may improve outcomes but these are generally reserved for higher-risk patients. Imaging may help guide the use of the newer therapies, but current guidelines focus more on clinical factors. Our goal was to create a risk model that incorporated quantitative echocardiographic and […]