[Improved diagnosis and therapy of pericardial effusion with two-dimensional echocardiography]

M-mode echocardiography has until now been the method of choice for the diagnosis of pericardial effusion in general clinical practice. Incidences of false positive and false negative findings have nonetheless been reported in the literature. A vastly simplified diagnosis with greater sensitivity and specificity has been achieved with the spatial orientation provided by a combination of two-dimensional echocardiography and M-mode echocardiography. With these two-dimensional techniques, pericardial puncture is rendered simpler and safer for the patient.