Acyanotic congenital heart disease and transesophageal echocardiography.

The spectrum of congenital heart disease (CHD) seen in the adult varies widely. Malformations range from mild anomalies requiring no intervention to extremely complex pathologies characterized by the presence of multiple coexistent defects. Echocardiography represents the primary noninvasive imaging modality in the assessment of these lesions. The transesophageal approach expands the applications of echocardiography by allowing the acquisition of anatomic and functional information that may not be obtainable by transthoracic imaging.