FROM CARDIAC AUSCULTATION TO ECHO-DOPPLER - LIMITATIONS OF BATH METHODS

Physiological tricuspid and pulmonary regurgitations are very often fo und by Echo-Doppler. They are generally slight, Inaudible and devoid o f significance. Tricuspid insufficiency nevertheless has the great adv antage of enabling the calculation of pulmonary pressures. Auscultatio n is a good method for the diagnosis of rheumatic mitral insufficiency or related to prolapse, but is not reliable in other situations. Dopp ler is an excellent method for the qualitative and etiological diagnos is of mitral insufficiency but enables only semi-quantification. It al so has the disadvantage of discovering minimal mitral insufficiency, t he significance of which is uncertain. In contrast to auscultation, Do ppler enables precise quantification in mitral stenosis. Auscultation is a good method for the diagnosis of aortic valve disease with the ex ception of slight insufficiency and stenosis in the elderly. Doppler e nables the quantification of stenosis and semi-quantification of insuf ficiency. The existence of physiological aortic regurgitation is by no means certain. In conclusion, auscultation remains an important tool in cardiological diagnosis but has notable limitations. Echo-Doppler i s a major advance but it is important to be aware of its limitations.