title: The echocardiographic diagnosis, characterization, and extraction guidance of cardiac foreign bodies.
abstract: Echocardiography is ideal for localizing cardiac foreign bodies and for characterizing associated cardiac and vascular injury before and during extraction. We report 5 cases of traumatic and iatrogenic cardiac foreign bodies that illustrate the central role of transthoracic and transesophageal ultrasonography in the management of these patients.
authors.affiliation: Cardiac Ultrasound Laboratory and Cardiology Division, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass, USA.
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Fry
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Picard
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Tseng
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Briggs
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Isselbacher
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal; D005260:Female; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery*; D006325:Heart Atria / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000293:injuries*; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000293:injuries*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures; D011859:Radiography