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Echocardiography is the predominant bedside, noninvasive method of assessing cardiac structure and function. Although originally developed as a diagnostic tool for cardiologists, recently it has been increasingly used across different specialties for acute patient care. The utility of point-of-care echocardiography has been demonstrated by neonatologists in neonatal intensive care units. Training in echocardiography is a complex process that, in addition to thorough theoretical knowledge, requires extensive hand-son training to acquire the all-important technical skills.
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Over the past 18 years, our group has been involved in presenting an annual course on functional echocardiography for neonatologists. The lectures and presentations in these courses provide the basis of this work. The book is extensively illustrated, and relevant video clips of echocardiograms are included: (available at http://PracticalNeonatalEcho.com). In this book, we present the core knowledge relevant to training physicians in point-of-care echocardiography for neonates. Although the book is primarily intended for neonatologists, it can serve as a resource for other professionals interested in neonatal echocardiography.
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We dedicate this work to the neonatologists who in spite of many obstacles have the passion to pursue the learning of this technique.
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