Need for a Global Definition of Normative Echo Values—Rationale and Design of the World Alliance of Societies of Echocardiography Normal Values Study (WASE)

In cardiac imaging, as in any other medical discipline, understanding what is “normal” within a population is fundamental to define the concept of abnormal. While this is straightforward in the presence of a tumor (a yes/no assessment) or an abnormal blood count, defining normal dimensions of cardiac chambers or the normal values of cardiac function poses a significant challenge. Echocardiography is the most widely used imaging modality to assess cardiac size and function, but despite the importance of having “reference limits” to define normal cardiac structure and function in echocardiography, the currently available studies fail to reflect the diversity of populations from around the world. Recommendations for Cardiac Chamber Quantification by Echocardiography in Adults: An Update from the American Society of Echocardiography and the European Association of Cardiovascular ImagingJournal of the American Society of EchocardiographyVol. 28Issue 1PreviewThe rapid technological developments of the past decade and the changes in echocardiographic practice brought about by these developments have resulted in the need for updated recommendations to the previously published guidelines for cardiac chamber quantification, which was the goal of the joint writing group assembled by the American Society of Echocardiography and the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging. This document provides updated normal values for all four cardiac chambers, including three-dimensional echocardiography and myocardial deformation, when possible, on the basis of considerably larger numbers of normal subjects, compiled from multiple databases. Full-Text PDF Recommendations for Chamber Quantification: A Report from the American Society of Echocardiography’s Guidelines and Standards Committee and the Chamber Quantification Writing Group, Developed in Conjunction with the European Association of Echocardiography, a Branch of the European Society of CardiologyJournal of the American Society of EchocardiographyVol. 18Issue 12PreviewQuantification of cardiac chamber size, ventricular mass, and function ranks among the most clinically important and most frequently requested tasks of echocardiography. Standardization of chamber quantification has been an early concern in echocardiography and recommendations on how to measure such fundamental parameters are among the most often cited articles in the field.1,2 During the last decades, echocardiographic methods and techniques have improved and expanded dramatically. Improvements in image quality have been significant, as a result of the introduction of higher-frequency transducers, harmonic imaging, fully digital machines, left-sided contrast agents, and other technologic advancements. Full-Text PDF