Focused Cardiac Ultrasonography

Highlights •FCU is an adjunct of the physical examination performed and interpreted at the point-of-care or bedside which demonstrably improves patient care, especially in acute circumstances. •FCU differs from echocardiography in being shorter and more focused on the presence or absence of a limited number of critical diagnoses which have immediate clinical consequences; it does not require full formal echocardiography or cardiology training but does require some dedicated and structured training. •Training pathways and their quality assurance, the range of its users, medicolegal and economic aspects, the role of focused cardiac ultrasonography with regard to standard echocardiography, the documentation and reporting of focused ultrasonography studies, and finally the potential technological advances such as artificial intelligence will need to be explored in the future.