Advanced Cardiac Point-of-Care Ultrasound: A Systematic Review of Select Cardiac Diseases

Abstract

Basic cardiac point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS)/focused cardiac ultrasound (FoCUS) often reveals incidental findings. Consider a patient with dyspnea in whom FoCUS reveals left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy, calcified valves, and pericardial effusion but "normal" LV systolic function. Such findings may trigger comprehensive echocardiography. Although advanced cardiac POCUS cannot replace comprehensive echocardiography, its role at the bedside is evolving. This systematic review identified studies suggesting that a sufficiently trained practitioner can leverage advanced techniques to evaluate conditions such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (4), LV diastolic dysfunction (6), severe valvular heart disease (6), and tamponade (8). This article discusses the use of advanced cardiac POCUS in these conditions.

Keywords: Diastolic dysfunction; Echocardiography; Focused cardiac ultrasound; Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy; Point-of-care ultrasound; Tamponade; Valvular disease.