title: [Echocardiography in the diagnosis of endocarditis: transthoracic or transesophageal?].
abstract: Echocardiography is an important tool for diagnosis and risk assessment in patients with infective endocarditis. In addition to the identification of typical vegetations, echocardiography is crucial for the evaluation of valvar regurgitations, and the early diagnosis of complications. Transesophageal echocardiography is, in nearly every aspect, except with concern to right-sided endocarditis, superior to the transthoracic approach. Thus, transesophageal echocardiography represents, in patients with substantial clinical suspicion for an active infection of endocardial structures, the currently most sensitive diagnostic tool.
authors.affiliation: Klinik für Kardiologie, Westdeutsches Herzzentrum Essen, Universitätsklinikum Essen, Essen. christoph.naber@uni-essen.de
authors.forename: Christoph K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Naber
authors.forename: Björn
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Plicht
authors.forename: Holger
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Eggebrecht
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Buck
authors.forename: Raimund
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Erbel
mesh_terms: D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods*; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal / Q000379:methods*; D004696:Endocarditis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*