Transesophageal Echocardiographic (TEE) Evaluation of the Aortic Valve, Left Ventricular Outflow Tract, and Pulmonic Valve

Abstract

The most important role of TEE in aortic valve disease is in the diagnosis of endocarditis and its complications. Examination of the annulus and subvalvular region is essential in any patient with possible aortic valve endocarditis. Assessment of the severity of aortic stenosis is a useful application of TEE when other data are either inconsistent or unavailable. TEE can provide a diagnosis of the origin of acute severe aortic insufficiency; this information may play a critical role in surgical planning. The diagnosis of a variety of aortic valve diseases can be made when TEE is performed to find an embolic source or to rule out dissection. In the case of mass lesions, such as papillary fibroelastomas and Libman-Sacks vegetations, the results of TEE carry major therapeutic implications. TEE offers generally excellent quality images of the LVOT and images of the RVOT and pulmonic valve that are superior to transthoracic echocardiography. The major clinical usefulness of TEE stems from its ability to identify pulmonic valve mass lesions and the causes of left and right ventricular outflow obstruction. TEE is also an important adjunct in the surgical management of left ventricular outflow obstruction.