The latest issue of CASE, ASE’s open access case reports journal, is now available with some fascinating reports, including “Ascending Aortic Aneurysm in an Asymptomatic Young Woman Without Risk Factors” by Amrin Kharawala, MD et al. CASE Editor-in-Chief, Vincent L. Sorrell, MD, FASE, noted, “In an important reminder to all of us who perform noninvasive imaging, the unpredictable nature of aortic disease should never stray too far from our clinical acumen. These authors report on an incidentally discovered 65mm ascending aorta in a young woman without a connective tissue disorder, aortic syndrome, or associated family history. They include excellent high-quality images from 2D echo, color flow Doppler and CT. Although surgical repair was impacted by a series of post-operative complications and a prolonged hospital course, this CASE presentation should serve as a critically relevant proclamation that we have much to learn about aortic disease. Echocardiography remains the best option we have for early detection and serial assessment, and it is incumbent upon us to obtain high quality images and report carefully measured maximal dimensions at every occasion.”

This issue contains two other Just Another Day in the Echo Lab cases, including severe aortic regurgitation caused by AV fenestrations and AV avulsion and embolization as a complication during TAVI. Learn more from reading their details on innovative management. Additionally, there are two reports in the Congenital Heart Disease category and three in the Cardiac Tumors and Pseudotumors category, featuring a study of a young man with Factor V Leiden experiencing a massive LV thrombus after a STEMI. In Dr. Sorrell’s editorial, he furthers his discussion on Doppler, drawing comparisons between the advancements of detection capabilities by U.S. military radar and those in the echo world through tissue Doppler methodologies (TDE).

The editorial also notes key inclusions for a successful CASE report, especially those on patients with a cardiac mass, as the Journal must select from several submissions each month in the Cardiac Tumors and Pseudotumors category. If you are looking for a journal to submit your case report to, CASE is the place. Email us with questions or submit your report today!

Be sure to check out the latest Sonographer Sound-Off and Unlock the CASE features on the CASE Homepage to dive deeper into new CASE content.

Sonographer Sound-Off (SSO) is an interactive feature that provides an opportunity for sonographers to share tips and tricks they have learned in their everyday practice. SSOs are posted on the CASE Homepage.

The latest SSO titled, Ultrasound Enhancing Agents and Utility of 3D in Aortopathies, features a case study complete with videos, images, and texts from Megan Yamat, RDCS, RCS, ACS, FASE, University of Chicago. The case illustrates how careful TTE imaging, together with thoughtful use of advanced techniques, specifically 3D, photo-realistic rendering, and UEA, can impact decision-making and ultimately patient outcome.

Do you have an image or video that illustrates something you learned from the acquisition or review of that study? If so, please click here to read the submission guidelines. If your image is chosen, you will receive an ASE guideline poster of your choice and be recognized on the CASE homepage, social media, and in the ASE member eNewsletter.

ASE has two live webinars planned this month that are free for ASE members. Log in to your ASE Member Portal and register by clicking the links below:

• April 18, 5-6 PM ET: Recommendations for Cardiac Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) in Children. This webinar, hosted by Jimmy Lu, MD, FASE; Alan Riley, MD, FASE; and Charisse Kwan, MD, will focus on the new ASE guideline entitled Recommendations for Cardiac Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) in Children. Earn 1.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ (pending approval).

• April 27, 5-6 PM ET: Comparative Echocardiography: Human and Nonhuman Primates. In this presentation, speakers Valérie Chetboul, MV, PhD, DECVIM; Ilana Kutinsky, DO, FACC; and Jonathan Lindner, MD, FACC, FASE; and moderator Philippe Pibarot, DVM, PhD, FASE, will discuss the several similarities and differences of echocardiographic methods applied to human and nonhuman primates. Earn 1.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.

Join us in National Harbor, Maryland, June 23-26, 2023

ASE’s 34th Annual Scientific Sessions is just over two months away, and now is the time to register and reserve your hotel room! Both in-person and virtual attendees will benefit from a comprehensive program focused on cardiovascular ultrasound as a foundational diagnostic tool, while also examining the future of the field.

Important Information and Quick Links

• Click here to complete in-person or virtual registration. ASE members receive reduced registration fees as a benefit of membership (remember to log in to your ASE Member Portal to receive member pricing).
• Additional early registration discounts expire on May 23, 2023.
• Download the Schedule at a Glance. In addition to session pathways and topic-based presentations, this year there are special sessions for the in-person attendees to meet with faculty in small intimate settings for more individualized learning.
• Reserve your discounted hotel room at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center and view overflow hotel options by visiting ASEScientificSessions.org/Housing. The room block will be held until June 2, 2023, or until the block is sold out.
• Participate in ASE’s new Sonographer Career Day on Saturday, June 24. Sonographer students who are currently enrolled in a sonography school program are encouraged to attend ASE 2023 on Saturday free of charge. This special day allows students a unique opportunity to network with faculty and learn more about their chosen career.

Apply Today!

ASE and the ASE Foundation are happy to announce a new funding opportunity available to early career scientists in cardiovascular imaging. The Early-Career Development Grant for Echo Scientists (EDGES) provides support and professional development opportunities for early career members in the Society and creates an avenue for the continued evolution of echocardiography through technical advancement and new applications.

The program will award three grants worth up to $25,000 USD to fund projects that address a clinical gap in cardiovascular ultrasound imaging through research led by an early career scientist. There are no specific research themes that will be prioritized, and clinical gaps may include, but are not limited to: new imaging technologies, novel approaches or populations for diagnostic imaging, ultrasound therapy, workflow automation, or patient/practitioner safety. Physicians, PhDs, veterinarians, sonographers, and other healthcare professionals who are within seven years from having completed training are eligible to apply now through July 1, 2023, 5 PM ET. The principal investigator must be an active ASE member.

The April JASE focuses on SHD interventions and includes “Recommendations for Special Competency in Echocardiographic Guidance of Structural Heart Disease Interventions: From the American Society of Echocardiography.” Lead authors Stephen H. Little, MD, FASE, and Vera H. Rigolin, MD, FASE, note that, “Transcatheter therapies have grown at a rapid pace in a very short period of time. This document outlines training standards for cardiology and anesthesiology fellows as well as those that have completed fellowship training and are learning interventional echocardiography via the experience pathway. The document outlines the requirements of the training institution, the duration of training, the core competencies of training, minimal procedural volume for competency in IE, and competencies for specific structural heart disease procedures.”

In her editorial, Patricia A. Pellikka, MD, FASE, JASE Editor-in-Chief, discusses the prevalent trend in medical publications of including more graphical content, stating, “Visual aids can assist with clarification of content, increase attention, save time, and enhance motivation for learning. JASE is interested in increasing pictorial and graphic content to make concepts easier to understand, increase engagement with our audience, and augment interest in the content.”

Additionally, the state-of-the-art review highlights echocardiographic considerations for tricuspid valve TEER. Other clinical investigations explore safety of TEE during structural cardiac interventions, the significance of RV-PA coupling in mitral valve TEER, the impact of MR in bicuspid aortic valve, machine learning detection of AS, and MAC in mitral valve SAM. The brief research communications describe rates of oropharyngeal and esophageal complications during structural heart disease procedures, patients with bicuspid aortic valve and large aortic annular diameter, and insights from a 15-year institutional experience of TEE for cardiac surgery patients with prior esophagectomies. Editorials further delve into MAC in SAM and harm prevention in structural cardiac interventions. The letters to the editor examine the diagnostic role of color-flow and continuous-wave Doppler echocardiography as well as transprosthetic cuff leakage of a novel aortic bioprosthesis.

The President’s Message, “Interventional Echocardiography: The Emergence of a New Imaging Specialty,” from Stephen H. Little, MD, FASE, reflects on aspects of this rapidly expanding subspecialty that has some catching up to do.

Deadline: April 15, 2023

Are you planning to attend ASE’s 34^th Annual Scientific Sessions? Apply for an ASEF Council Travel Grant! The application deadline is Saturday, April 15. 

Each spring, ASEF funds Council Travel Grants for trainees and others to support their attendance at ASE’s annual Scientific Sessions. These grants are part of an ongoing effort by ASEF and the Council Steering Committees to encourage individuals interested in cardiovascular specialties to focus on the respective echocardiography subspecialty and to recruit enthusiastic new members to the ASE Councils. 

The Council Travel Grant application is open for all six ASE Councils:

• Cardiovascular Sonography Council
• Circulation & Vascular Ultrasound Council
• Critical Care Echocardiography Council
• Interventional Echocardiography Council
• Pediatric and Congenital Heart Disease Council
• Perioperative Echocardiography Council

The March 2023 Echo magazine is now online! This issue contains an article honoring world-renowned clinician and ASE’s Past President Bijoy Khandheria, MD, FASE, and interesting articles written by ASE Members, including:

• Sonographer Challenges Today, page 4
• Meet Me at the 2023 ASE Scientific Sessions National Harbor: Foundations and the Future of Cardiovascular Ultrasound, page 7
• Sonographer Volunteer of the Month-March, Congratulations Cody Frye, BA, RDCS, FASE, page 10
• Critical Care Echocardiography and Consultative Echocardiography: More Alike Than Not, page 12
• Global Health Work–Echocardiography Around the World!, page 15
• Getting Started in Perioperative Echocardiography-Related Research: The Why, When, and How, page 20
• Progress Through Partnership: Perspectives from Pediatric Disciplines on the ASE Recommendations for Cardiac Point-of-Care Ultrasound in Children, page 23
• Perioperative Echocardiography – Novel Applications in a New Environment, page 28

ASE members can write and submit articles to Echo magazine for publication. The article submission deadline for the June 2023 issue is April 15. Visit ASE’s website to review the author guidelines requirements on formatting, word length, etc. Contact Echo@ASEcho.org with questions and view past issues at ASEcho.org/EchoMagazine.

The ASE Foundation’s March Games ends on April 2, but there’s still time to support your team with a donation! We encourage you to also celebrate Women’s History Month by donating in honor of the important women in your life. Include a tribute message and send their picture to Foundation@ASEcho.org, and we’ll post it online!

Does your team have what it takes?! The Cardiovascular Sonography Council Steering Committee continues to increase its lead! As of March 27, they have raised $495. In second is the Interventional Echocardiography (IE) Council Steering Committee with $320. The Circulation & Vascular Ultrasound Council Steering Committee and Emerging Echo Enthusiast (E3) Specialty Interest Group have yet to make a basket. It’s not too late to get in on the action!

ASE and the ASE Foundation are pleased to announce that Marielle Scherrer-Crosbie, MD, PhD, FASE, Professor of Medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, is the recipient of the $1.1M USD Impact of Echocardiography Report Recommendations on Referral Patterns and Outcome in Patients with Severe Valvular Heart Disease (SVD) grant. The grant, which is awarded by ASE through its Foundation with funding support from Edwards Lifesciences, will examine the impact of embedded echocardiography report interventions on referral patterns and outcomes in patients newly diagnosed with severe aortic stenosis (AS) by echocardiography.

ASE made the decision to provide this funding opportunity as a result of the growth in numbers of patients presenting with AS. ASE believes that the diagnosis, referral, and treatment for these patients needs to be optimized to lower healthcare costs and increase positive patient outcomes. Dr. Scherrer-Crosbie’s research will examine the role of a primary care provider and referral patterns to a cardiac specialist for patients presenting with severe AS, though the study may be expanded to include other forms of SVD.