Echo is a non-invasive modality for estimating pulmonary artery pressures (PAP), but accuracy is not known. In this small single institution study, 65 consecutive patients had both echo and right heart cath done to evaluate PAP. They found echo underestimated PAP by at least 10mmHg in 25% and overestimated it by at least 10mmHg in 27% of the patients. Echo should be considered only a rough estimate of PAP in most patients (abstract).
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