Science of Ultrasound and Echocardiography

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Abstract

For anyone seeking to achieve proficiency in transesophageal echocardiography, it is important to have a solid understanding of the underlying science of ultrasound, along with knowledge of the instrumentation and equipment utilized for cardiac imaging. This chapter provides a review of all of these topics, particularly as they apply to echocardiography. Basic principles of sound will first be discussed, followed by the process of ultrasonic two-dimensional image formation. Principles of Doppler echocardiography (and its applications) will then be presented. Finally, echocardiography instrumentation, echocardiographic artifacts, and digital archiving/networking of echocardiographic studies will be discussed. Familiarity with the information in this chapter will provide readers a greater understanding of the many technical aspects of echocardiography, enabling them to optimize their cardiac ultrasound platforms so that the best possible information can be obtained.

Keywords

Ultrasound physics B-mode imaging Phased array transducers Doppler echocardiography Spectral Doppler Color flow Doppler DICOM 
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Copyright information

© Springer-Verlag London 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Division of Cardiology, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Department of Pediatrics, Keck School of MedicineUniversity of Southern CaliforniaLos AngelesUSA

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