ABSTRACT
Echocardiography has changed the face of diagnostic cardiology over the last 20 years, and although aspects of cardiac ultrasound imaging have become increasingly sophisticated, the basic information provided by echocardiography is relevant to everyone involved in the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease in the modern era. Cardiac surgeons have long been familiar with diagnostic cardiac catheterization and coronary angiography, yet echocardiography has until recently remained in the realms of cardiologists. With the advent of intraoperative echocardiography and particularly transesophageal echocardiography (TEE), an understanding of cardiac ultrasound is now an important aspect of cardiac surgical training.
