Is Australasia Ready for Sonographer-led Stress Echocardiography?

Functional testing for ischaemic heart disease provides valuable diagnostic and prognostic data, and stress echocardiography (SE) is well demonstrated to be an accurate, safe, and cost-effective procedure [1]. However, access to SE can be limited by the availability of appropriately trained physicians, particularly outside major city centres. In response, many institutions have explored the feasibility of using highly specialised physiologists to supervise the SE with limited or no cardiologist interaction, introducing the concept of competent ‘supervision’ in appropriate circumstances— including defined cognitive and practical experiences, as well as specific skills [2].

Source: Heart, Lung and Circulation - March 7, 2021 Category: Cardiology Authors: Anthony Forshaw, John F. Younger, Sean Coffey, Gillian A. Whalley Tags: Editorial Source Type: research