title: Comparison of transcoelomic, contrast transcoelomic, and transesophageal echocardiography in anesthetized red-tailed hawks (Buteo jamaicensis).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the agreement and reliability of cardiac measurements obtained with 3 echocardiographic techniques in anesthetized red-tailed hawks (Buteo jamaicensis).
  
  
  METHODS
  10 red-tailed hawks.
  
  
  METHODS
  Transcoelomic, contrast transcoelomic, and transesophageal echocardiographic evaluations of the hawks were performed, and cineloops of imaging planes were recorded. Three observers performed echocardiographic measurements of cardiac variables 3 times on 3 days. The order in which hawks were assessed and echocardiographic techniques were used was randomized. Results were analyzed with linear mixed modeling, agreement was assessed with intraclass correlation coefficients, and variation was estimated with coefficients of variation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significant differences were evident among the 3 echocardiographic methods for most measurements, and the agreement among findings was generally low. Interobserver agreement was generally low to medium. Intraobserver agreement was generally medium to high. Overall, better agreement was achieved for the left ventricular measurements and for the transesophageal approach than for other measurements and techniques.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Echocardiographic measurements in hawks were not reliable, except when the left ventricle was measured by the same observer. Furthermore, cardiac morphometric measurements may not be clinically important. When measurements are required, one needs to consider that follow-up measurements should be performed by the same echocardiographer and should show at least a 20% difference from initial measurements to be confident that any difference is genuine.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA. hbeaufrere@vetmed.lsu.edu
authors.forename: Hugues
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Beaufrère
authors.forename: Romain
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pariaut
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
authors.forename: Javier G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Nevarez
authors.forename: Thomas N
authors.initials: TN
authors.lastname: Tully
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods* / Q000662:veterinary; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal / Q000379:methods* / Q000662:veterinary; D046428:Hawks / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006321:Heart / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D008145:Louisiana; D015588:Observer Variation; D015203:Reproducibility of Results