Table 1.

Potential advantages and disadvantages of echocardiography versus invasive monitoring.

	Echocardiography	Invasive haemodynamic monitoring
Invasiveness	TTE noninvasive TEE semi-invasive	PAC invasive arterial waveform analysis semi-invasive
Portability	Scanners easily moved to patient	Generally not portable
Use in acute care	Yes, also documented for ED	No
Diagnostic value	Yes	Yes
Monitoring capability	Yes	Yes
User dependent	Very user dependent	Less user dependent, some methods require calibration

PAC: pulmonary artery catheter; TTE: transthoracic echocardiography; TEE: transoesophageal echocardiography.