Echocardiography

Cardiac ultrasound uses reflected sound waves (echos) to create images of anatomy inside the body. Echocardiograms are the primary cardiac imaging modality used to assess the heart and diagnose or track cardiac issues. Echo is the gold standard imaging modality to assess the heart, particularly with calculating left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), which is a measure of cardiac output. In addition to noninvasive standard transthoracic echo (TTE), invasive transesophgeal echo (TEE) is also used when clearer, more detailed imaging of the heart is needed. Both 3D and 4D echo echo systems are rapidly gaining wider adoption and enable new types of assessments, especially in the structural heart space and in transcatheter procedural guidance. Find news on general ultrasound imaging.

The iCardio.ai EchoMeasure AI software to automate measurements for cardiac echo imaging. It was FDA cleared in October 2024.

FDA approves AI startup’s new software for echo assessments

iCardio.ai, co-founded by a cardiologist, is part of the Cedars-Sinai Accelerator program. The startup has already announced new partnerships with Viz.ai, Abbott and others in the cardiac health space. 

Ultrafast/high frame rate myocardial contrast echocardiography

Ultrafast myocardial contrast echocardiography shows early potential to evaluate CAD

Ultrafast MCE could go on to become a go-to treatment option for obstructive coronary artery disease, according to the authors of a new first-in-human clinical study.

ASE establishes vocabulary for cardiac POCUS to promote consistency

As cardiac point-of-care ultrasound use continues to grow outside of traditional echo labs, the American Society of Echocardiography is working to ensure everyone is on the same page.

Cardiac PET on the rise among U.S. cardiologists

SPECT is still the most common modality used to evaluate CAD patients, but cardiac PET is gaining more and more momentum.

The American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) has shared new recommendations for performing medical imaging exams on heart failure patients with surgically implanted left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) and temporary mechanical circulatory support (TMCS) devices. The guideline, published in full in the Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography, represents ASE’s first update on the topic since 2015.[1]

ASE shares new guideline on imaging patients with implanted devices

The new guideline details the best imaging strategies for a variety of clinical scenarios. 

AISAP, an Israeli healthcare technology company focused on using artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance medical imaging results, has gained U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance for its new point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) software platform, AISAP Cardio.

FDA clears AI-powered POCUS platform for structural heart disease, heart failure

The cloud-based platform was designed to help even inexperienced users scan and diagnose a majority of common heart issues within minutes without leaving the patient’s side.

Images coronary calcium imaging by optical coherence tomography (OCT) and high-definition intravascular ultrasound (IVUS).

OCT-guided PCI improves survival after life-threatening heart attacks

Researchers explored data from nearly 4,000 STEMI patients, noting that optical coherence tomography may be a valuable first step of any treatment strategy. 

Siemens Healthineers has gained U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance for Acuson Origin, its new cardiovascular ultrasound system featuring advanced artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities. The Acuson Origin represents a significant update from the prior Siemens Healthineers cardiovascular ultrasound system, the Acuson SC2000.

Siemens Healthineers gains FDA clearance for new AI-powered cardiovascular ultrasound system

The Acuson Origin system includes advanced AI algorithms designed to assist users with the treatment of diagnostic, structural heart, vascular, electrophysiological and pediatric patients. It also comes packaged with a new 4D ICE catheter capable of multiplanar reconstruction imaging with or without the use of an electrocardiogram.

Around the web

The nuclear imaging isotope shortage of molybdenum-99 may be over now that the sidelined reactor is restarting. ASNC's president says PET and new SPECT technologies helped cardiac imaging labs better weather the storm.

CMS has more than doubled the CCTA payment rate from $175 to $357.13. The move, expected to have a significant impact on the utilization of cardiac CT, received immediate praise from imaging specialists.

The newly cleared offering, AutoChamber, was designed with opportunistic screening in mind. It can evaluate many different kinds of CT images, including those originally gathered to screen patients for lung cancer. 

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