Echocardiography

Echocardiography is used frequently in cardiology to image the heart. It provides high quality pictures of the moving heart and helps the cardiologist determine whether the heart is functioning normally and to analyse the state of the valve of the heart.

Echocardiography can also be used to look for the causes of other conditions such as stroke. In this video a clot is seen in the right atrium crossing a hole in the heart called a patent foramen ovale and leading to a stroke.

Training in echocardiography is a long and complex process which takes several years to complete. Many cardiologists can carry out an echo but not all have received accreditation from the British Society Society of Echocardiography. Echocardiography should only be performed by clinicans who have receive appropriate training and undergone accreditation from the British Society of Echocardiography. I received BSE accreditation in 2012 and undertaken an active echo practice including scanning and contributing to our weekly echocardiography review meeting at St Helier Hospital.
Click here to see the British Society of Echocardiography Accredited Members List. I have also run two successful courses training other doctors to perform echocardiography (Handheld Echo for Critical Care & Preparation and Revision for the BSE Examination).