Ultrasound: The New Stethoscope (Point-of-Care Ultrasound).

Advances in technology have led to more user-friendly ultrasound devices that allow for easy incorporation into daily perioperative practice, with the anesthesiologist serving as the sonographer. With appropriate knowledge and training, bedside ultrasound examinations can be used to better diagnose pathology and guide perioperative strategies. Cardiac ultrasound examination was the initial emphasis in anesthesiology, with now expansion into lung and gastric ultrasound imaging.

Regional Versus Global Measurements of Right Ventricular Strain Performed in the Operating Room With Transesophageal Echocardiography.

Objective: To compare regional and global measures of right ventricular (RV) strain in patients undergoing intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography (TEE).

Design: Prospective, nonrandomized, observational study.

Setting: Single tertiary-level, university hospital.

A Comparison of Left- and Right-Sided Strain Software for the Assessment of Intraoperative Right Ventricular Function.

Objective: To compare intraoperative right ventricular (RV) strain measurements made with left ventricular (LV) strain software commonly found on the echocardiography machine (Philips QLAB chamber motion quantification, version 10.7, Philips, Amsterdam, The Netherlands), with offline analysis using the dedicated RV strain software (EchoInsight, version 2.2.

Perioperative safety in coronary artery bypass grafting: the role of the anesthesiologist.

Purpose Of Review: As our population ages and cardiovascular disease increases in prevalence, a growing number of patients will be candidates for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Outcomes from this common surgery can be improved by a coordinated team approach involving physicians, nurses, and healthcare professionals from multiple specialties. This review will discuss the role cardiovascular anesthesiologists play in the perioperative care of these complex patients.

Intraoperative Transesophageal Echocardiography and Right Ventricular Failure After Left Ventricular Assist Device Implantation.

Objective: To determine whether intraoperative measures of right ventricular (RV) function using transesophageal echocardiography are associated with subsequent RV failure after left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation.

Design: Retrospective, nonrandomized, observational study.

Setting: Single tertiary-level, university-affiliated hospital.

Why Anesthesiologists Must Incorporate Focused Cardiac Ultrasound Into Daily Practice.

The size, availability, cost, and quality of modern ultrasound devices have, for the first time in modern medicine, enabled point-of-care ultrasound by the noncardiologist physician. The appropriate application of focused cardiac ultrasound (FoCUS) by anesthesiologists has the potential to alter management and affect outcomes for a wide range of patients. In this article, the indications, benefits, and limitations of FoCUS are described.

The Nuts and Bolts of Performing Focused Cardiovascular Ultrasound (FoCUS).

The benefit of focused cardiovascular ultrasound as an adjunct to physical examination has been shown in numerous specialties and in diverse clinical settings. Although the value of these techniques to the practice of anesthesiology is substantial, they have only begun to be incorporated. This article reviews the basic techniques required to perform a bedside focused cardiovascular ultrasound (ie, FoCUS examination).