Scan Protocol and Scoring System:
Once the patient had been identified we performed
a 5-minute scan with the pocket-size
echo system first and then the study was followed
by the traditional echo scan. The images
were reviewed by 3 board-certified pediatric cardiologists
that were blinded to the subjects and
to the results of the FFES. Each recorded their
interpretations using a scoring system. Our scoring
system was the following: 1 = PDA present,
2 = suspicious for PDA, 3 = no PDA present,
4 = not interpretable. The scans using the PES
included parasternal short-axis view, parasternal
ductal view and suprasternal aortic arch view.