Department of Peri-Operative Cardiology and Cardiovascular Imaging

Echocardiography

Quick Facts

The laboratory has 28 latest-generation echocardiographic devices, 8 of which are equipped with three-dimensional technology, and ensures different types of examinations (thoracic, transoesophageal, echocardiograms during exercise and pharmacologically induced stress).

It provides an on-call service to support the activities of the Emergency Room, Coronary Unit, Haemodynamics Suite, Post-operative Intensive Care and Cardiac Surgery Unit.

The Echocardiography laboratory can rely on the professional skills of a team of 25 highly specialised echocardiographers.

The activities have increased exponentially in recent years, for both inpatients and outpatients.
The laboratory has 28 latest-generation echocardiographic devices, 8 of which are equipped with three-dimensional technology, and ensures different types of examinations (thoracic, transoesophageal, echocardiograms during exercise and pharmacologically induced stress).

For several years, there has been an on-call service to support the activities of the Emergency Room, Coronary Unit, Haemodynamics Suite, Post-operative Intensive Care and Cardiac Surgery Unit.

Research Activities

  • The Department as a whole addresses several research topics.
    These are the main ones:

    • superiority of three-dimensional technology in the assessment of right and left atrial function, mitral prolapse and intraoperative monitoring;
    • practicability and accuracy of non-invasive assessment with coronary artery native CT, stent and aorto-coronary bypass;
    • new cardiac CT techniques with reduced radiation doses while maintaining high accuracy in the evaluation of native and stent coronaries;
    • use of cardiac MRI in the development of new methods of studying heart cavities and valve systems;
    • new biomedical engineering approaches in evaluating cardiac image with three-dimensional technology to better follow ventricular remodeling after cardiac surgery and study the dynamics of mitral and aortic valves;
    • collaboration with other Departments for a multidisciplinary approach in specific contexts in the evaluation of patients to undergo electrophysiological procedures, therapies for heart failure, coronary angioplasty procedures, cardiac surgery (in particular in the percutaneous closure of the left auricle, implantation of percutaneous or transapical aortic valves and percutaneous repair with mitral-mitral-clip valve).

Other Activities

  • Educational activities

    Most of the clinicians provide their collaboration with the University of Milan carring on teaching activities.
    The laboratory hosts every 3 months a rotation of specialists in cardiology, and provides the logistics and tutors necessary for the preparation of theses.
    The laboratory also welcomes medical visitors from other Italian and foreign Institutes, for educational purposes.

    National and international scientific activities

    The clinicians are involved in several national and international congresses and courses as speakers.