[Echocardiography in stroke patients (with emphasis on cryptogenic stroke)].
As discussed throughout this review, multiple potential cardioembolic sources for stroke can be identified with the use of echocardiography. We believe that echocardiography plays an important role in the evaluation and risk stratification of patients with suspected cardioembolic stroke and, when used appropriately, can help in the management and treatment of these patients. Although TTE is superior for evaluation for the presence of a mural thrombus, TEE offers a higher sensitivity and specificity in identifying nearly all other potential cardiac sources of stroke. In the patient in whom the clinical scenario appears to implicate the heart as a potential culprit in an embolic event, the threshold for evaluation with echocardiography should be low.
Homma
Shunichi
S
Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Columbia University.
D004452:Echocardiography; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D020521:Stroke / Q000175:diagnosis*