2 D ECHO
An echocardiogram often referred as a cardiac ECHO or simply an ECHO, is a sonogram of the heart also known as a cardiac ultrasound, it uses standard ultrasound techniques to image two-dimensional slices of the heart.
In addition to creating two-dimensional pictures of the cardiovascular system, an echocardiogram can also produce accurate assessment of the velocity of blood and cardiac tissue at any arbitrary point using pulsed or continuous wave Doppler ultrasound. This allows assessment of cardiac valve areas and function, any abnormal communications between the left and right side of the heart, any leaking of blood through the valves (valvular regurgitation), and calculation of the cardiac output as well as the ejection fraction. Other parameters measured include cardiac dimensions (luminal diameters and septal thicknesses) and E/A ratio.
