Key Points
- To review the historical progression and diagnostic capabilities of equine echocardiography, from early one-dimensional imaging to advanced Doppler techniques.
- Narrative synthesis of diagnostic techniques used in equine cardiology, contrasting physical exams, electrocardiography, radiography, and catheterization with ultrasound modalities.
- Evaluation of M-mode, two-dimensional, contrast, and pulsed, continuous-wave, and color flow Doppler echocardiography across neonates and adult horses.
- Two-dimensional echocardiography significantly improves the characterization of congenital defects, valvular regurgitation, myocardial wall motion abnormalities, endocarditis, and pericardial effusion over one-dimensional M-mode views.
- Doppler modalities provide precise spatial localization and semiquantitation of regurgitant jets and abnormal shunt flows, enabling noninvasive calculation of intracardiac pressure gradients and cardiac output.
Structured PICO
PPopulationHorses (critically ill neonates and adults) with suspected cardiac disease
IInterventionEchocardiography (M-mode, two-dimensional, contrast, and Doppler)
Echocardiography, including M-mode, 2D, and Doppler techniques, has significantly advanced the ability to noninvasively diagnose and characterize cardiac disease, function, and blood flow in horses.