title: Digital echocardiography: its role in modern medical practice.
abstract: Digital echocardiography has evolved rapidly during the last decade, and the all-digital echocardiographic laboratory has just reached the threshold of reality. This review article explains what this transition means for the modern medical practice and concisely presents what a digital echocardiogram is, the technical aspects of digital image acquisition and processing, and the advantages and limitations of digital echocardiography vs analog echocardiography. This review should serve as a useful source of information for the general cardiologist not working closely with digital echocardiography, as well as a resource for the noncardiologist.
authors.affiliation: Mid-America Cardiology Associates, The Mid-America Heart Institute, St. Luke's Hospital, Kansas City, MO 64111, USA.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bansal
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ehler
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Vacek
mesh_terms: D004452:Echocardiography / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation*; D011873:Radiology Information Systems / Q000295:instrumentation*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity