Adult Intraoperative Echocardiography: A Comprehensive Review of Current Practice

Intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography is a mature imaging modality and critical component of contemporary heart surgery, in which it plays a key role in surgical planning, determination of cardiac chamber filling and function early after cardiopulmonary bypass, and timely assessment of surgical interventions. Intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography affords the unique opportunity to correct suboptimal surgical results before leaving the operating room. Herein, the authors provide a comprehensive review of their institution's experience with intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography, emphasizing a practical assessment of commonly encountered noncongenital surgical heart lesions in adults, anticipation of potential surgical complications, and imaging approaches to facilitate timely surgical correction of unsatisfactory results.