B P3 C16 Echocardiography Flashcards
Early ultrasound equipment projected a single beam of ultrasound,which resulted in a single scan line that could be “painted” across a moving paper or screen,with depth being depicted on the vertical axis and time on the horizontal axis. This method, known as _____ echocardiography
M-mode (for motion)
Proper interpretation of returning signals is physically limited by the speed of sound in tissues (approximately ___m/ sec) and the depth of the tissues being interrogated, both of which dic
1540 m/s
Nevertheless, improvements in processing speed have allowed “frame” rates, a major determinant of temporal resolution, to reach speeds higher than _____ image frames per second.
100
The _____ of the ultrasound used, which is inversely related to ultrasound frequency, is the principal determinant of axial imaging resolution, which equals approximately half the wavelength.
Wavelength
The higher the ultrasound frequency (i.e., shorter the wavelength), the higher is the _____
Spatial Resolution
Most TTE machines operate across frequencies of _____ MHz.
2.5 to 5 MHz
Higher frequencies up to _____ MHz can be used in pediatric imaging,
7 to 10 MHz
The speed of ultrasound through body tissues averages _____ meters per second (m/sec), essentially the speed of sound through water, but varies minutely as ultrasound waves traverse various body constituents.
1540 m/s
These slight differences in ultrasound speed through different media (e.g., blood, muscle, fat, air) result in impedance mismatches at the tissue interfaces, which produces the _____ that mark the boundaries between different tissues.
Specular reflections
When ultrasound encounters inhomogeneous tissue regions, such as myocardium, liver, or other tissues, _____, occurs and results in speckled-appearing images.
Multidirectional reflection, or backscatter
In ______ Doppler, discrete pulses of ultrasound reflect off moving structures (i.e., red blood cells moving through the heart) and return to the transducer.
Pulsed-wave
With _____ Doppler a dedicated piezoelectric element continuously emits ultrasound, and a separate element simultaneously continuously receives the returning signals.
Continuous-wave
This refers to the maximum velocity that can be accurately quantified within a given sample volume and is directly related to the PRF (the numeric value equals 1⁄2 the PRF)
Nyquist limit
_____ Doppler is primarily used to assess flow with relatively low velocity (typically ≤1.5 m/sec) present at a specific location
Pulsed-wave
_____ Doppler is used to assess higher velocities (typically ≥1.5 m/sec) along the transducer beam, but cannot specify at what location the highest velocity occurs.
Continuous-wave
____ Doppler is a PW Doppler–based technique in which the velocities in a region of interest are encoded with colors that represent both mean velocities and directionality of the flow, which are superimposed on a 2D image in the region of interest
Color Flow Doppler
By convention, flow moving away from the transducer is encoded in _____, and flow toward the transducer is encoded in _____.
Away: Blue; Toward: Red
_____ flow, in which a wide range of velocities exist, appears as a multicolored mosaic pattern (usually green and yellow).
Turbulent
Blood flow through the normal heart and great vessels is predominantly _____, meaning that the direction and velocity of flow are streamlined and uniform, even across valves.
Laminar
_____ echocardiography provides greater temporal resolution than standard 2D imaging and was traditionally the method of choice for certain linear measurements, particularly those that are collinear with the ultrasound beam.
M-mode
Estimates the pressure gradient (ΔP) between two chambers separated by an orifice based on the velocity of flow through the orifice.
Bernoulli equation
P1 − P2 = 4V2
It is important to appreciate that Doppler echocardiography measures _______ but neither pressure nor flow direction.
Velocity
The magnitude of flow can also be inferred by multiplying the ________ by the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the region being interrogated
Velocity-time integral (VTI; i.e., integrated velocity throughout the cardiac interval)
The _________ is based on conservation of mass and states that flow in one region of the heart should be equivalent to flow in another region (assuming no intervening shunt or valve regurgitation).
Continuity principle