High Prevalence of Clinically Important Echocardiographic Abnormalities in Patients with a Normal Electrocardiogram Referred for Transthoracic Echocardiography

Clinically important TTE abnormalities in patients with a normal ECG are common, suggesting that normal ECG results should not routinely preclude TTE imaging to identify structural heart disease. However, recognition of common clinical indications and application of the appropriate use criteria may identify patients with a normal ECG in whom TTE imaging is of very low yield.