[Transthoracic ultrasound: a necessary standard within intensive, acute and pre-hospital medicine].

The introduction of focus assessed transthoracic echocardiographic (FATE) protocols has brought ultrasound into the first line in evaluating the critically ill patient. The technical advancements within ultrasound technology with miniaturisation and refinements of equipment have made the advantages of imaging available in the hemodynamic monitoring, and this modality now surpasses more conventional methods in feasibility and specificity. It seems reasonable to expect echocardiography to be incorporated as a new standard in the immediate assessment of the critically ill patient in the emergency and the intensive care unit as well as in the pre-hospital setting.