ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY

• Echocardiography utilizes ultrasound to produce images of the heart and vascular structures and to provide information about the direction and velocity of blood flow within these structures
• An echocardiogram is an ultrasound test that checks the structure and function of the heart, diagnosing conditions like cardiomyopathy and valve disease
• Echocardiography uses no radiation, distinguishing it from tests like X-rays and CT scans that use radiation
• 1. mode echocardiography is useful for measuring or viewing heart structures, providing a single line of information at a higher frame rate than two-dimensional echocardiography
• Doppler echocardiography measures and assesses blood flow through the heart's chambers and valves, detecting abnormal blood flow within the heart
• Color Doppler is an enhanced form of Doppler echocardiography that assesses blood flow based on changes in the ultrasonographic signal due to the movement of erythrocytes relative to the transducer
• Transthoracic echocardiography is the most common type, painless and noninvasive, with a transducer placed on the chest over the heart
• Transesophageal echocardiography provides superior image quality, particularly for posterior cardiac structures, and requires the transducer to be inserted down the throat into the esophagus
• Stress echocardiogram is performed while the person exercises to visualize the motion of the heart's walls and pumping action under stress
• Fetal echocardiography uses sound waves to check the heart of a developing baby, helping find heart defects before birth for better treatment outcomes
• A cardiac sonographer, trained in performing echo tests, performs echocardiograms using the most current technology in various settings including hospital rooms and catheterization labs
• Pulse generator applies high amplitude voltage to energize the crystals
• Transducer coverts electrical energy to mechanical energy and vice versa
• Receiver detects and amplifies weak signals
• Display displwy ultrasound signals in variety of modes
• Memory stores video display
• Principles of Ultrasonic Imaging - Piezoelectric effect (crystals vibrate when exposed to an electric field)
• Ultrasound is sound waves with frequencies above human hearing range (20 kHz). It travels through tissues at different speeds depending on tissue density.
• Echo machines use piezoelectric crystals that convert electrical impulses into acoustic pulses and back again.
• Ultrasound is sound waves with frequencies above human hearing range, typically between 20 kHz and 1 GHz.
• Echoes are reflected back from interfaces between tissues, such as the interface between blood and myocardium or pericardial fluid.
• The echoes return to the transducer where they are detected by the receiver.
• The speed of sound varies by tissue type, ranging from 1540 m/sec in bone to 1690 m/sec in muscle.
• Pulse-echo technique involves sending short bursts of high frequency sound waves into the body and measuring how long it takes for echoes to return.