European Society of Cardiology
Skip navigation links
Home
About the ESC
Membership
Communities
Congresses
Education
Guidelines & Surveys
Journals
Initiatives
Welcome to the European Society of Cardiology. Our mission: to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease in Europe
 

Topics

1  General principles of echocardiography 

1.1 Principles of ultrasound
1.2 Transducers
1.3 Imaging principles of ultrasound
1.4 Biologic effects of ultrasound and safety
1.5 Quality assurance of ultrasound instruments
1.6 Principles of Doppler echocardiography

2   The Echocardiographic examination 

2.1 The echo exam
2.2 Anatomy and physiology of the heart and great vessels
2.3 Arrhythmias and conduction disturbances

3   Assessment of diameters, volumes and mass 

3.1 Assessment of cardiac diameters
3.2 Assessment of LV volume
3.3 Assessment of RV volume
3.4 Left ventricular mass

4   Noninvasive hemodynamics derived from Echo-Doppler 

4.1 Basic principles
4.2 Principles of volume and flow measurement
4.3 Normal antegrade intracardiac flows
4.4 Assessment of intracardiac pressures
4.5 Continuity equation
4.6 Pressure half-time method
4.7 Proximal Isovelocity Surface Area (PISA)
4.8 Contractility assessment (dP/dt)

5   Assessment of systolic function 

5.1 Determinants of LV performance
5.2 Global LV systolic function
5.3 Regional systolic function
5.4 Interdependence of LV and right ventricle
5.5 Global right ventricular systolic function

  Assessment of diastolic function 

6.1 Basic principles
6.2 Echo-Doppler approach to LV diastolic function

7   Ischemic heart disease 

7.1 Coronary anatomy and function
7.2 Myocardial ischemia
7.3 Myocardial infarction

8   Heart valve diseases 

8.1 Aortic stenosis
8.2 Pulmonic stenosis
8.3 Sub- / Supravalvular stenosis
8.4 Mitral stenosis
8.5 Tricuspid stenosis
8.6 Basic principles of valve regurgitation
8.7 Aortic regurgitation
8.8 Mitral regurgitation
8.9 Mitral valve prolapse
8.10 Tricuspid regurgitation
8.11 Pulmonic regurgitation
8.12 Prosthetic valve
8.13 Endocarditis
8.14 Valvular heart disease associated with systemic conditions

9   Cardiomyopathies

9.1 Dilated cardiomyopathy
9.2 Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
9.3 Restrictive cardiomyopathies
9.4 Infiltrative cardiomyopathy
9.5 Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia
9.6 Other myocardial diseases
9.7 Effect of systemic illnesses on the heart
9.8 Takotsubo cardiomyopathy
9.9 Cardiac transplantation

10   Systemic and pulmonary hypertensive heart disease 

10.1 Systemic hypertension
10.2 Pulmonary heart disease (Cor Pulmonale)

11   Pericardial disease 

11.1 Normal pericardial anatomy
11.2 Pericardial effusion
11.3 Constrictive per icarditis
11.4 Pericardial cysts
11.5 Congenital absence of per icardium

12   Basics in congenital heart disease in the adult 

12.1 Basic embryology
12.2 Segmental approach
12.3 Outflow obstruction
12.4 Abnormal intracardiac communications
12.5 Persistent left superior vena cava
12.6 Ebstein’s anomaly
12.7 Tetralogy of Fallot after repair
12.8 Congenital abnormalities of the aorta

13   Masses, tumors and sources of embolism 

13.1 Infectious masses
13.2 Noninfectious vegetations (nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis)
13.3 Thrombi
13.4 Cardiac tumors
13.5 Miscellaneous non-neoplastic intracardiac masses
13.6 Extracardiac “masses”
13.7 Structures mistaken for abnormal cardiac mass

14   Diseases of the aorta 

14.1 Aortic dissection
14.2 Thoracic aortic aneurysms
14.3 Traumatic injury of the aorta
14.4 Aortic atherosclerosis
14.5 Sinus of valsalva aneurysms

15   Stress echocardiography 

15.1 Basic principles
15.2 Technical and interpretative aspects
15.3 Accuracy
15.4 Dypiridamole stress echo
15.5 Dobutamine stress echo
15.6 Prognostic role of stress echo
15.7 Myocardial viability
15.8 Stress echo for hemodynamics and valve disease

16   Transesophageal echocardiography 

16.1 The procedure

17   Contrast echocardiography and tissue harmonic imaging 

17.1 Bubble physics, pharmacology, safety
17.2 Contrast agents
17.3 Imaging instrumentation for contrast agents

18   Real-time three-dimensional echocardiography 

18.1 Comparison between 2D and 3D
18.2 Instrumentation
18.3 Display
18.4 Quantitation

19   Tissue Doppler and speckle tracking 

19.1 Techniques
19.2 Clinical applications

20   Systemic diseases and other conditions 

20.1 Athlete’s heart
20.2 Heart during pregnancy
20.3 Systemic diseases

21  Principles of quality assessment in echocardiography 

21.1 Principles of quality measurements