• Sean M Lang, Elijah Bolin, Joshua A Daily, Xinyu Tang, and Thomas CollinsRR2ndArkansas Children's Hospital, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA.Arkansas Children's Research Institute, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA.University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA..
• Arkansas Children's Hospital, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA.
• Congenit Heart Dis. 2017 Mar 1; 12 (2): 210-217.

ObjectiveMultiple reports have shown echocardiograms for certain indications are neither cost-effective nor of high diagnostic yield. Given the ease with which tests can be obtained at a tertiary academic children's hospital, our aims were to: (1) determine the diagnostic yield of inpatient studies by in-hospital location; (2) evaluate inpatient echocardiograms to determine indications and level of appropriateness; and (3) evaluate the frequency of cardiology involvement prior to those echocardiograms.DesignAll initial inpatient echocardiograms interpreted at our institution from February 2009 to December 2014 were reviewed retrospectively. Patient location was grouped as pediatric intensive care (PICU), emergency department (ED), and general floor.ResultsThere were 727 first-time inpatient echocardiograms that met inclusion criteria. Pathology was identified in 25% of the study echocardiograms, with 11% of all studies demonstrating pathology that could alter patient management (moderate or severe pathology). The studies performed in the PICU and ED had more severe pathology compared with those from the general floor (P < .001, .003; respectively). Few echocardiograms were performed for rarely appropriate indications on the general floor (7%) and PICU (2.2%). Over 75% of general floor echocardiograms performed for a pathologic murmur yielded normal or incidental findings. Cardiology consultation was documented in only 7.5% of general floor studies.ConclusionThe diagnostic yield of inpatient, first-time pediatric echocardiograms is relatively low. The majority of studies that identified pathology were performed on patients located in higher acuity units. General floor echocardiograms for murmurs had a low diagnostic yield, raising the question of cardiology consultation versus direct echocardiogram ordering for subjective physical exam signs.© 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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