[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-563220-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-1-en-105":74,"doc-detail-563220-en":120},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":67,"head_meta":69,"extra_data":71,"updated_unix":73},105,"en","focus-chronic-heart-failure-echocardiography-in-heart-failure-a-guide-for-general-practice","FOCUS - Chronic Heart Failure - Echocardiography in Heart Failure - A Guide for General Practice","","Chronic heart failure requires accurate assessment of cardiac dysfunction for diagnosis, prognosis, and management. Echocardiography is presented as an essential, noninvasive first-line investigation to evaluate cardiac chamber size and structure, ventricular and valvular function, and key haemodynamic parameters. The guide explains how general practitioners can interpret echocardiographic reports, identify causes of heart failure, determine further investigations, and apply evidence-based therapy, including monitoring impaired systolic function and other risk-related findings.",{"@graph":14,"@context":66},[15,34,49],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/","Template",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/paper-templates/","Paper Templates",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/focus-chronic-heart-failure-echocardiography-in-heart-failure-a-guide-for-general-practice/563220/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"author":36,"headline":10,"publisher":39,"fileFormat":42,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":43,"datePublished":43,"encodingFormat":42,"isAccessibleForFree":44,"interactionStatistic":45},"DigitalDocument",{"name":37,"@type":38},"LangkahRina","Person",{"url":19,"name":40,"@type":41},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-12",true,{"@type":46,"interactionType":47,"userInteractionCount":4},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":48},"ViewAction",{"@type":50,"mainEntity":51},"FAQPage",[52,58,62],{"name":53,"@type":54,"acceptedAnswer":55},"Why is echocardiography considered essential in suspected heart failure?","Question",{"text":56,"@type":57},"Echocardiography confirms cardiac dysfunction and assesses chamber structure, ventricular and valvular function, and key haemodynamic parameters, supporting diagnosis and management.","Answer",{"name":59,"@type":54,"acceptedAnswer":60},"What information can echocardiography provide for heart failure care?",{"text":61,"@type":57},"It can indicate likely causes, suggest whether further investigations are required, identify therapy options, and provide important prognostic information.",{"name":63,"@type":54,"acceptedAnswer":64},"How does transthoracic echocardiography fit into investigation pathways?",{"text":65,"@type":57},"Transthoracic echocardiography is typically used as the first-line investigation, while transoesophageal echocardiography is reserved for specific situations.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":68,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":40,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":70,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":72,"site_id":7},563220,1791822095,{"code":4,"msg":75,"data":76},"success",[77,82,87,92,97,102,107,112,116],{"id":78,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":79,"show_sort_weight":80,"slug":81},11,"Presentations",90,"presentations",{"id":83,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":84,"show_sort_weight":85,"slug":86},12,"Resumes",80,"resumes",{"id":88,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":89,"show_sort_weight":90,"slug":91},14,"Invoices",70,"invoices",{"id":93,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":94,"show_sort_weight":95,"slug":96},15,"Posters",60,"posters",{"id":98,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":99,"show_sort_weight":100,"slug":101},16,"Social Media",50,"social-media",{"id":103,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":104,"show_sort_weight":105,"slug":106},17,"Forms",40,"forms",{"id":108,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":109,"show_sort_weight":110,"slug":111},18,"Letters",30,"letters",{"id":113,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":114,"slug":115},21,5,"papers-templates",{"id":117,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":118,"show_sort_weight":4,"slug":119},158,"General","general-158",{"code":4,"msg":75,"data":121},{"doc_id":72,"user_id":122,"nickname":37,"user_avatar":123,"doc_module":22,"category_id":113,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":124,"file_id":125,"file_url":126,"file_type":127,"file_size":128,"view_count":4,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":129,"language":130,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":131,"faqs":132,"seo_title":133,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":73,"read_time":26},962090893776,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_155a257f0dc6eb9ab79c44ca47cae57d","FOCUS  Chronic heart failure  \nEchocardiographyin heart failure  \nA guide forgeneral practice  \n\n| Background\u003Cbr>Echocardiography is an essential investigation inpatients with suspected heart failure. An echocardiogram provides assessment of cardiac chamber size and structure, ventricular function, valvular function and key haemodynamic parameters.\u003Cbr>Objective\u003Cbr>This article explains the principles of echocardiography and how general practitioners can use echocardiograms to manage patients with heart failure.\u003Cbr>Discussion\u003Cbr>Echocardiography can provide diagnostic information about the cause of heart failure, and may indicate what further investigations are required and what therapy is indicated. It may also provide important prognostic information. It can be used for noninvasive quantitative monitoring. Identification of impaired systolic function is important as there is evidence based therapy which can improve prognosis in this condition.\u003Cbr>Keywords: heart diseases; heart failure; echocardiography\u003Cbr>|\n| --- |\n| |\n\n904 Reprinted from AustRAliAn FAmily PhysiciAn Vol. 39, no. 12, decembeR 2010  \nHeart failure is the inability of the heart to provide sufficient cardiac output for the body’s needs without an increase in filling pressures. Heart failure can be difficult to diagnose as the symptoms and signs can be nonspecific – it is important to confirm a clinical diagnosis by demonstrating cardiac dysfunction.  \nAll major heart failure guidelines, including the Australian guidelines developed by the national heart Foundation and cardiac society of Australia & new Zealand, recommend echocardiography as an essential first line investigation in the evaluation of suspected heart failure.1 Retrospective studies suggest that patients with a clinical diagnosis of heart failure who have had an echocardiogram have a better outcome than those who have not, presumably due to more appropriate evidence based management.2 this article will discuss why assessment of cardiac structure and function is critical in evaluating heart failure, the specific information gained from an echocardiogram and how to interpret an echocardiogram report. it will concentrate on the use of transthoracic echocardiography as this is typically the first line investigation with transoesophageal echocardiography reserved for specific situations.  \nin Australia, ischaemic heart disease accounts for about 50% of patients with heart failure.1 other common causes include hypertension and dilated cardiomyopathy. underlying valvular heart disease and pericardial disease are less common but important as they may be amenable to surgical treatment. less common but identifiable by echocardiogram are hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a cause of left heart failure and pulmonary hypertension, a cause of right heart failure ( Table 1) .  \nPreviously left ventricular failure was considered a disease of reduced left ventricular systolic function. however, recent studies suggest up to 50% occur in the setting of a normal ejection fraction, particularly in the elderly. this is thought to be partly due to impaired cardiac filling, with similar symptoms to systolic dysfunction. traditionally called diastolic heart failure, evidence for subtle abnormalities of systolic contraction means ‘heart failure with normal ejection fraction’(hFneF) is the preferred term.  \n| Table 1. Important causes of heart failure with reduced and normal ejection fraction |  |\n| --- | --- |\n| Reduced ejection fraction | Normal ejection fraction |\n| • Coronary artery disease | • Hypertension |\n| • Hypertension | • Coronary artery disease |\n| • Dilated cardiomyopathy\u003Cbr>– idiopathic\u003Cbr>– familial\u003Cbr>– toxic (drugs, alcohol)\u003Cbr>– metabolic (thyroid abnormalities)\u003Cbr>– myocarditis\u003Cbr>– peripartum | • Valvular heart disease |\n|  | • Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy |\n|  | • Restrictive cardiomyopathy |\n|  | • Infiltrative cardiomyopathy\u003Cbr>– amyloidosis\u003Cbr>– iron deposition |\n|  | • Constrictive pericarditis |\n| • Valvul","cbCailFRLnRNJs9U","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCailFRLnRNJs9U","pdf",549759,6,"English","# Background\n## Objective\n## Discussion\n# Principles of Clinical Cardiac Ultrasound\n## Doppler and Hemodynamic Measurements\n## Common Echocardiographic Views","[{\"question\":\"Why is echocardiography considered essential in suspected heart failure?\",\"answer\":\"Echocardiography confirms cardiac dysfunction and assesses chamber structure, ventricular and valvular function, and key haemodynamic parameters, supporting diagnosis and management.\"},{\"question\":\"What information can echocardiography provide for heart failure care?\",\"answer\":\"It can indicate likely causes, suggest whether further investigations are required, identify therapy options, and provide important prognostic information.\"},{\"question\":\"How does transthoracic echocardiography fit into investigation pathways?\",\"answer\":\"Transthoracic echocardiography is typically used as the first-line investigation, while transoesophageal echocardiography is reserved for specific situations.\"}]","FOCUS - Chronic Heart Failure - Echocardiography in Heart Failure - A Guide for General Practice | PDF"]