The American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) has released a new consensus statement on the practice of using ultrasound as a tool for improving patient physical examinations.
The full document, titled "Focused Cardiac Ultrasound: Recommendations From the American Society of Echocardiography," is in the June issue of the Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography, according to the organization.
Recent improvements in the portability of cardiovascular ultrasound equipment have significantly affected its use in medical practice, and cardiac ultrasound images are being acquired by a variety of specialists and generalists in a range of settings, such as outpatient clinics, inpatient wards, critical care units, emergency departments, and remote clinics, ASE said.
The new statement aims to inform the medical community about how focused cardiac ultrasound can be used to improve patient care, as well as encourage additional training for comprehensive transthoracic cardiovascular exams, according to ASE.
