Confidence in Echocardiography

Module 1: core views

• Introduction
• The Right Parasternal Inflow View
• The Right Parasternal Outflow View
• Preparation for scanning: Image Optimisation & Tissue Harmonic Imaging
• Colour Doppler in Echocardiography

Module 2: wall thickness, dimensions and systolic function

• Visual assessment of chamber sizes, wall thickness and left ventricular systolic function.
• Visual assessment from the right parasternal long axis approach
• Visual assessment continued
• Colour Box Placement

Module 3: the left ventricle

• The papillary muscle level or “mushroom view”
• The mitral valve level or “fish mouth view”
• The apical short axis view
• Introducing the short axis
• Obtaining B and M mode short axis images
• Performing your measurements: IVS, LVIDd, PW and LVIDs
• Left Ventricular Systolic Function
• Fractional Shortening & Ejection Fraction

Module 4: the semilunar valves

• The Aortic Valve in Long Axis
• The Aortic Valve in Short Axis
• Visualising the Pulmonary Valve
• The Left Atrium
• Inspirion Exercise
• An in-depth look at the history and evolution of the LA:Ao ratio measurement, and how to perform it
• Familiarisation with pulmonary regurgitation.
• Calculating an LA:Ao ratio
• Left atrial diameter

Module 5: the atrioventricular valves

• The Tricuspid Valve
• The Mitral Valve
• Mitral Stenosis
• Mitral Regurgitation
• Primary mitral regurgitation: myxomatous mitral valve disease
• Secondary mitral regurgitation: Functional mitral valve disease
• Colour Doppler in patients with mitral regurgitation
• Case walkthrough

Module 6: the right heart

• What is pulmonary hypertension?
• Assessing the right heart
• Pressure overload
• Volume overload
• Septal flattening
• Feline patients
• Introduction to apical probe positioning
• Obtaining your 4 and 5 chamber views
• Quantifying RV longitudinal function with TAPSE

Module 7: cardiomyopathies

• Primary and secondary signs of cardiomyopathy on echocardiography
• How to screen for cardiomyopathy with cardiac ultrasound
• Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
• Papillary Muscles
• Measuring wall thickness
• Obstructive HCM
• Diastolic Function & HCM
• Dilated Cardiomyopathy
• EPSS
• Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy
• Calculating Ejection Fraction from the apical and right parasternal views

Module 8: effusions

• Pericardial effusions
• Reporting pericardial effusions
• Differentiating pericardial and pleural effusions
• Effusion examples
• Getting started with spectral Doppler