caa a22 4500 606240055 CHVBK 20210128101306.0 cr unu---uuuuu 210128e20150701xx s 000 0 eng 10.1007/s00508-015-0828-1 doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1007/s00508-015-0828-1 Stress-echocardiography is underused in clinical practice: a nationwide survey in Austria [Elektronische Daten] [David Weidenauer, Philipp Bartko, Heidemarie Zach, Manfred Zehetgruber, Hans Domanovits, Senta Graf, Gerald Mundigler] Summary: Background: The wide area of application, including coronary artery disease, valvular heart disease, or pulmonary hypertension makes stress echocardiography (SE) a powerful, cost-effective imaging modality in cardiology. The role of this technique in clinical practice in Austria is unknown. Methods: A nationwide survey included all departments for cardiology and/or internal medicine in the years 2008 and 2013. By electronic questionnaire demographics, indication for the test, the numbers of examined cases per year, operators, and various applied techniques of SE were interrogated and completed by telephone interviews. Results: Data could be obtained from all 117 departments. In the year 2007 in 58 (50 %) and in 2012 57 (49 %) departments SE was available in Austrian hospitals. More than 100 SEs per year were performed by only four (7 %) units in the year 2007 and by five (8 %) in 2012. Physical exercise, dobutamine, and dipyridamole SE were available in 27 (46 %), 52 (90 %), and six (10 %) units in 2007, and in 15 (27 %), 52 (91 %), and five (9 %) units in 2012, respectively. In 2007 41 (71 %) and in 2012 26 (46 %) echo-labs administered contrast agents during SE. Transesophageal SE and 3D-echo was performed in one (2 %) and three (5 %) units in 2007, and in six (10 %) and four (7 %) echo-labs in 2012. Conclusions: This representative survey demonstrates the underuse of SE in clinical practice in Austria. Even in established application fields performance is low, examination frequencies as recommended by the cardiology societies are fulfilled only by a minority of institutions. Springer-Verlag Wien, 2015 Stress echocardiography nationallicence Coronary artery disease nationallicence Valvular heart disease nationallicence Quality standards nationallicence Echo lab nationallicence Weidenauer David Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut Bartko Philipp Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut Zach Heidemarie Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut Zehetgruber Manfred Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut Domanovits Hans Department of Emergency Medicine, Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria aut Graf Senta Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut Mundigler Gerald Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut Wiener klinische Wochenschrift Springer Vienna 127/13-14(2015-07-01), 514-520 0043-5325 127:13-14<514 2015 127 508 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00508-015-0828-1 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00508-015-0828-1 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Weidenauer David Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Bartko Philipp Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Zach Heidemarie Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Zehetgruber Manfred Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Domanovits Hans Department of Emergency Medicine, Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Graf Senta Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Mundigler Gerald Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine II, Medical University Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria aut NATIONALLICENCE 773 0- Wiener klinische Wochenschrift Springer Vienna 127/13-14(2015-07-01), 514-520 0043-5325 127:13-14<514 2015 127 508