High-resolution heart ultrasound a must in draft NHS (National Health Service) policy:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
Doppler 2D echocardiographic assessments of potential valve disease will be performed by the NHS only on high-resolution equipment, if new guidelines on the management of chronic heart failure are adopted. The final draft document published today (April 8 2003) by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) for consultation, sets out the diagnostics technology to be used by such services, including 12-lead ECG and/or natriuretic peptides tests to exclude diagnosis, transthoracic echocardiography to provide further confirmation where appropriate, and a range of other tests, including X-rays, blood tests and urinanalysis. The consultation ends May 2; the guidelines are due to be published in July.