Live 3D Transesophageal Echo (TEE), can see cardiac structure and function as well as real-time displays of the beating heart from new perspectives. It’s quick, accurate, reproducible, and quantifiable. This procedure allows for more perspectives of the heart and the view inside the left ventricle. With TEE, the back of your throat is numbed, and a scope is inserted down your throat. On the end of the scope is an ultrasonic device that an experienced technician will guide down to the lower part of the esophagus. It is used to obtain a clearer two-dimensional echocardiogram of your heart. Unlike traditional cardiac ultrasound systems which provide images taken from the surface of the chest, TEE captures images from inside the body allowing different perspectives. New views of cardiac structure, disease and function can provide additional information for diagnoses, treatment planning, monitoring and assessing during procedures and follow-up.

There are several reasons you may need an echocardiogram. 

This test is performed to evaluate the valves and chambers of the heart in a noninvasive way. Echocardiography allows doctors to diagnose, evaluate, and monitor:

• Heart murmurs
• Abnormal heart valves
• The pumping function of the heart for people with heart failure
• Damage to the heart muscle in patients who have had heart attacks
• Atrial fibrillation
• Infection in the sac around the heart (pericarditis)
• Infection on or around the heart valves (infectious endocarditis)
• The source of a blood clot or embolism after a stroke or TIA
• Congenital heart disease
• Pulmonary hypertension

A normal echocardiogram reveals normal heart valves and chambers and normal heart wall movement.

The doctor will explain the findings of the echocardiogram to your referring physician. Then additional tests may be performed, or treatment may be recommended. Treatment for heart problems may include medication, surgery and/or lifestyle modification.