Echocardiography

Echocardiography is an ultrasound of the heart (ultrasound diagnosis) of the heart muscle, which allows you to determine its: condition, size, structure. The technique also allows you to examine the work of the heart, its valves, and blood vessels in real-time.

ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY FOR BEGINNERS

The principle of ECO-CG is based on the fixation (with the help of special equipment) of ultrasonic waves that are reflected from the tissues of the body and feed its vessels and then converted into an image that is displayed on the screen. By adjusting the intensity and minimal changes in ultrasound frequency, the doctor can obtain information about absolutely every area of the heart and record the progress of the study, for example, on a disk or flash drive.

The technique is highly informative because it allows you to almost completely study the heart and its:

structure;
contractility;
the direction of blood flow in the chambers;
and other important indicators.

Echocardiography is completely safe and painless for humans, so it can often be used to monitor the dynamics of change in the treatment of a particular disease. The patient does not require any special training for echocardiography. Moreover, without ECHO-CG today it is impossible to correctly diagnose and prescribe treatment for suspected heart failure.

INDICATIONS FOR USING A HEART DIAGNOSIS

Studies are usually prescribed for:

chest injuries;
changes recorded during the ECG (electrocardiography);
congenital and acquired heart disease (eg, defects);
symptoms of heart failure;
diagnosed with pericarditis and myocarditis;
acute coronary syndrome;
ischemia and cardiomyopathy;
thrombi found in the pulmonary artery;
frequent dizziness, shortness of breath, weakness, and unexplained loss of consciousness;
pain in the heart of various kinds;
arrhythmias and tachycardia;
hypertension and hypertension;
suspicion of a tumor in the heart;
pulmonary hypertension;
suspected thoracic aortic aneurysm and etc.

VARIETIES AND TECHNIQUES OF ECHO-CG

There are 4 techniques for performing an ultrasound of the heart:

Transthoracic.
Portable.
Transesophageal.
Intracardiac.

Consider them in more detail.

Transthoracic

The most common version of the study, in which the sensors are located:

along the edges of the chest;
at the apex of the heart;
in the jugular notch;
in the area under the sternum.

The technique allows to obtain a two-dimensional image of the heart muscle and its large structures, and also helps to adequately assess the condition of the ventricles, the thickness of their walls, the size, and cavity of the heart, the structure of the aortic root.

Portable (POCUS)

Limited diagnosis, the purpose of which is to promptly confirm or refute ventricular dysfunction or pericardial effusion. Usually, POCUS is performed in intensive care, and portable devices are used for the study. The technique also justifies itself in cases where there is no access to standard cardiac equipment to study the work of the heart.

Transesophageal

As part of the esophageal ECHO-KG sensor is attached to the end of the endoscope and allows you to assess the heart "from the inside" - the equipment is inserted into the esophagus. This technique is used in some cases when it is impossible to conduct a full transthoracic procedure. For example, in obese patients or certain lung diseases. Transesophageal ECHO-CG can visualize only small pathologies such as open oval windows or vegetation caused by endocarditis.

Structures of the heart that allow you to assess and identify:

ear of the left atrium;
the left atrium itself;
structure of the pulmonary artery;
ascending aortic division;
anteroseptal defect;
small tumors up to 2 mm.

Intracardiac

The sensor in this procedure is located at the end of the catheter, which is inserted through the femoral artery and moves directly into the heart. This technique is used quite rarely - only when performing time-consuming manipulations such as opening an oval window or internal closure of atrial septal defects.

ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY: DECODING

The norms for echocardiography depend on the specific patient, or rather the general state of his health and the diagnosed heart disease with which he was sent for examination. But if we talk about a completely healthy person, his ECHO-CG will show the following data.

Right ventricle:

wall (thickness) - 5 mm .;
size (index) - 7.5-12.5 mm / m. sq .;
size (at rest) - 7.5-11 mm.

Left ventricle:

myocardium (weight) - for women: 95-141 grams, for men: 135-182 grams;
myocardium (mass index) - for women: 71-80 gr./m. sq., for men: 71-94 gr./m. sq .;
volume at rest - for women: 59-136 ml., for men: 65-193 ml .;
dimensions at rest - for women: 46 mm., for men: 57 mm .;
sizes at reductions - for women: 31 mm., for men: 43 mm .;
wall thickness when working out of contractions - 11 m (if the figure is 16 mm or more, this indicates hypertrophy);
ejection fraction - from 55-60% (this parameter indicates the amount of blood ejected with each contraction of the heart. If during the study the value is below 55%, it may indicate heart failure);
amount
(shock) - 60-100 ml. (volume of blood expelled by the heart during contraction).

Pericardium:

liquid - 10-30 ml. (if the value exceeds 500 ml., pericarditis may develop, adhesions around the pericardial sac of the heart muscle itself).

Echocardiography can detect many heart diseases in the early stages. And this is one of the most important advantages of such an ultrasound examination because this way doctors will be able to quickly take measures to stabilize the heart and, perhaps, the patient will be able to avoid the dangerous consequences of disease progression.

PRICES FOR ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY IN THE SVYATY COMPLEX

Sanatorium-resort complex Svityaz offers you to undergo echocardiography at a very low price of 600 hryvnias. You can also consult with a cardiologist (for only 400 hryvnias, if you choose the package "ECG, ECHO and specialist consultation - transcript" for 750 hryvnias). To sign up for research or get answers to your questions, just contact our manager.

REVIEWS ABOUT ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY

We always receive positive feedback about the procedure, because it is completely painless, does not require any training, and in many cases allows a person to quickly begin treatment of a newly diagnosed disease. In addition, good reviews are due to the modern equipment we use.