title: Echophysiology: the transesophageal echo probe as a noninvasive Swan-Ganz catheter.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In an attempt to make cardiovascular monitoring less invasive and more effective, transesophageal echocardiography is progressively being used in critically ill patients suffering from hemodynamic instability. This review analyses the capacity of transesophageal echocardiography to fully replace the pulmonary artery catheter in the management of hemodynamic impairment, as transesophageal echocardiography similarly allows for the measurement of central venous pressure, pulmonary arterial pressure, pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, pulmonary vascular resistance, stroke volume and cardiac output, and systemic vascular resistance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Recently, the accuracy and clinical applicability of transthoracic echocardiography to establish the entire hemodynamic profile in patients with decompensated heart failure has convincingly been demonstrated. Because many principles are similar in transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography, it has been hypothesized that the latter modality is also qualified to quantitatively determine intracardiac hemodynamics, including pressure and flow.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Transesophageal echocardiography has the potential to offer a noninvasive, valid alternative to Swan-Ganz catheters in the hemodynamic assessment of patients in the perioperative period.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Intensive Care and Pain Medicine, University of Münster, Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Meersch
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zarbock
mesh_terms: D002407:Catheterization, Swan-Ganz; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal / Q000379:methods*; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006439:Hemodynamics / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans