Echocardiography utilises ultrasound to assess the structure and function of the heart. Soundwaves produced by the system provide detailed imaging of the heart, called echocardiograms, which can be used to diagnose and monitor heart conditions.
Scans are performed by highly skilled, sub-specialised sonographers with more than 10 years of experience in cardiac ultrasound.
Echocardiography can be used to assess things like:
- The size and function of the heart chambers
- The motion of the heart’s muscular walls
- The state and function of the heart’s valves
- The presence of fluid around the heart (pericardial effusion)
- Ejection fraction, or the strength of contraction of the left ventricle (a measurement of how much blood the left ventricle pumps with each heartbeat)
Echocardiograms can be used to detect or monitor a range of conditions like congenital heart disease, endocarditis, cardiomyopathy, valve disease and more.