Hemodynamic Assessment in the CCU by Echocardiography

Cardiac hemodynamics and intracardiac pressures can be assessed noninvasively with echocardiography. The simplified Bernoulli equation can be used for the majority of calculation for inter-chamber gradients. These measurements can aid in the assessment and management of patients in the cardiac intensive care unit. This chapter will focus on the hemodynamic assessment of the cardiac intensive care patient using Doppler and other echocardiographic techniques.