Contrast echocardiography: a practical guideline from the British Society of Echocardiography

Reinette Hampson; Roxy Senior; Liam Ring; Shaun Robinson; Daniel X Augustine; Harald Becher; Natasha Anderson; James Willis; Badrinathan Chandrasekaran; Attila Kardos; Anjana Siva; Paul Leeson; Bushra S Rana; Navtej Chahal; David Oxborough

doi:10.1186/s44156-023-00034-9

Contrast echocardiography: a practical guideline from the British Society of Echocardiography

Echo Res Pract. 2023 Nov 15;10(1):23. doi: 10.1186/s44156-023-00034-9.

Authors

Reinette Hampson¹, Roxy Senior^{2

3}, Liam Ring⁴, Shaun Robinson⁵, Daniel X Augustine^{6

7}, Harald Becher⁸, Natasha Anderson⁹, James Willis⁶, Badrinathan Chandrasekaran¹⁰, Attila Kardos^{11

12}, Anjana Siva¹³, Paul Leeson¹⁴, Bushra S Rana⁵, Navtej Chahal¹, David Oxborough¹⁵

Affiliations

¹ London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK.
² London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK. roxysenior@cardiac-research.org.
³ Royal Brompton Hospital and Imperial College, London, UK. roxysenior@cardiac-research.org.
⁴ West Suffolk Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Bury St Edmunds, UK.
⁵ Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK.
⁶ Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, Bath, UK.
⁷ Department for, Health University of Bath, Bath, UK.
⁸ Alberta Heart Institute, University of Alberta Hospital, Edmonton, Canada.
⁹ Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Warrington, UK.
¹⁰ Wiltshire Cardiac Centre, Great Western Hospital NHS Trust, Swindon, UK.
¹¹ Translational Cardiovascular Research Group, Department of Cardiology, Milton Keynes University Hospital, Milton Keynes, UK.
¹² Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Buckingham, Buckingham, UK.
¹³ Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth, UK.
¹⁴ Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
¹⁵ Liverpool Centre for Cardiovascular Science, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK.

Abstract

Ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs) have a well-established role in clinical cardiology. Contrast echocardiography has evolved into a routine technique through the establishment of contrast protocols, an excellent safety profile, and clinical guidelines which highlight the incremental prognostic utility of contrast enhanced echocardiography. This document aims to provide practical guidance on the safe and effective use of contrast; reviews the role of individual staff groups; and training requirements to facilitate its routine use in the echocardiography laboratory.

Keywords: Echocardiography; Guideline; Ultrasound contrast agents.

Publication types

Review