Diagnostic Errors in Echocardiography: Review of Five Interesting Pediatric Cases

Abstract

Echocardiography is considered the primary diagnostic tool for congenital heart diseases. The pediatric echocardiography diagnostic errors, consisting of false positive or discrepant diagnoses, picked up within a 2.5-year period in our pediatric echocardiography laboratory are presented herein. In this case report, the factors contributing to the diagnostic errors are categorized as cognitive such as misidentification/misinterpretation of findings and distraction by other diagnoses; procedural or conditional such as incomplete examination of anatomy/physiology and poor imaging conditions; and finally communicational or informational such as lacking or misleading patient’s history and incorrect requisition.
The quality of diagnostic pediatric echocardiography can be improved if the operator has sufficient knowledge about the normal growth and development of children, different types of congenital heart defects, and principles of ultrasound physics.