Authors

• Andrijana Erak — University Hospital Centre Osijek, Osijek, Croatia — ORCID: 0000-0003-3426-842X

Keywords

echocardiography, nurse, patient

DOI

Full Text

**Introduction:** Echocardiography is a diagnostic examination that provides into the comprehensive anatomy and physiology of the heart. The most commonly used method is transthoracic echocardiography. There is also invasive diagnostics, transesophageal echocardiography, and intracardiac echocardiography, which is performed under anesthesia (1). Importance of informing patients has been emphasized, which facilitates cooperation during diagnostic procedures and treatment. It is necessary to clearly and concisely explain the type of examination and describe how the examination is performed. Psychological preparation sometimes is more challenging and more important than the physical preparation of the patient. (2) The aim was to examine the preparation and information of patients for echocardiography regarding age, gender, education level, and the type of examination. **Patients and Methods:** A cross-sectional study included 106 patients who came for echocardiography. A survey questionnaire developed for this research was used as the research instrument on patients’ awareness and preparedness for echocardiography. The study included 106 participants, of which 52 (49%) were males and 54 (51%) were females. **Results:** There was no significant difference in the awareness and preparation of participants for echocardiography regarding gender and age. Participants with higher education levels agreed that they knew how the examination was conducted before coming, unlike participants with lower levels of education. The results of the conducted research indicate that participants are well informed and prepared for echocardiographic examinations, with no significant differences based on gender and age. **Conclusion:** Participants who underwent transesophageal ultrasound of the heart considered themselves better informed and prepared compared to those who underwent transthoracic echocardiography.

Literature

1. Lopez-Candales A, Hernandez-Suarez DF. Strain Imaging Echocardiography: What Imaging Cardiologists Should Know. Curr Cardiol Rev. 2017;13(2):118–29. https://doi.org/10.2174/1573403X12666161028122649
2. Ohta Y, Miki I, Kimura T, Abe M, Sakuma M, Koike K, et al. Epidemiology of Adverse Events and Medical Errors in the Care of Cardiology Patients. J Patient Saf. 2019 September;15(3):251–6. https://doi.org/10.1097/PTS.0000000000000291