Epicardial echocardiography

The technique described in this thesis will be referred to as "epicardial echocardiography". The addition "intraoperative" is unnecessary, since "epicardial" presumes operative access to the heart. If the transducer is applied to the aorta or other great vessels after a median sternotomy, it would be more correctly to refer to the technique as "epivascular echography". However, for simplicity, this term will only be used if the transducer is applied to the descending thoracic and abdominal aorta after lateral thoracotomy or thoraco-abdominal incisions. The technique where the transducer is introduced into the esophagus during the operation will be referred to as "intraoperative esophageal echocardiography".4 The traditional approach of echocardiography, by placing the transducer upon the chest, will be referred to as "precordial" or "transthoracic echocardiography".