Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography : official publication of the American Society of Echocardiography
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Right ventricular (RV) free wall strain (RVFWS) is a feasible method for quantitation and follow-up of RV function and may have benefits over traditional markers such as fractional area change. However, like all ejection phase parameters, RVFWS is difficult to assess in the presence of changing afterload. The aim of this study was to compare RVFWS and traditional RV function parameters for tracking progress of RV function in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) over a range of pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASPs). ⋯ Afterload changes should be taken into account in the evaluation of RVFWS during PAH follow-up, with the relationship to PASP likely to be linear.
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J Am Soc Echocardiogr · Jul 2017
Evaluating Appropriate Use of Pediatric Echocardiograms for Chest Pain in Outpatient Clinics.
Echocardiography is often used in the evaluation of pediatric chest pain, but the incidence of cardiac pathology is low. In 2014, the American College of Cardiology published appropriate use criteria (AUC) for echocardiography including recommendations for pediatric chest pain. We evaluated the frequency and diagnostic yield of echocardiograms performed for each AUC indication and cost associated with echocardiograms performed for indications meeting the "rarely appropriate" criteria. ⋯ Echocardiogram use in patients meeting the "rarely appropriate" indication criteria is of little diagnostic utility and contributes to additional cost to the patient and health care system.