A brief history of fetal echocardiography and its impact on the management of congenital heart disease.
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-2017
Identifier
DOI: 10.1111/echo.13713
Abstract
Congenital heart disease (CHD), the most common congenital malformation, is associated with adverse outcome. Development of fetal echocardiography has made prenatal diagnosis of CHD a reality, and in the process revolutionized its management. This historical review briefly narrates this development over the decades focusing on the emergence of the primary modalities of fetal echocardiography comprised of the time-motion mode, two-dimensional B-mode, spectral Doppler, color Doppler, and three- and four-dimensional cardiac imaging. Collaboration between clinicians and engineers has been central to these advances. Also discussed are the accuracy and impact of fetal echocardiography on the management of CHD, and especially its role in the prenatal diagnosis of critical CHD in individualizing the management and improving the outcome. Despite these advances, most cases of CHD are not identified prenatally, emphasizing the continuing need for further technological and educational innovation and improvement.
Journal Title
Echocardiography (Mount Kisco, N.Y.)
Volume
34
Issue
12
First Page
1760
Last Page
1767
MeSH Keywords
Echocardiography; Female; Fetal Heart; Heart Defects, Congenital; Humans; Pregnancy; Ultrasonography, Prenatal
Keywords
Doppler echocardiography; color Doppler; congenital heart disease; fetal echocardiography; history; live 3D
Recommended Citation
Maulik D, Nanda NC, Maulik D, Vilchez G. A brief history of fetal echocardiography and its impact on the management of congenital heart disease [published correction appears in Echocardiography. 2018 Apr;35(4):581]. Echocardiography. 2017;34(12):1760-1767. doi:10.1111/echo.13713
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Comments
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