Transesophageal echocardiogram requires insertion of a probe into the esophagus which can cause discomfort to the patient and even a real intolerance to the procedure. For this reason it is common practice to proceed with sedation of the patient, through the administration of drugs which, in turn, may have side effects, and require a period of observation after the examination which jeopardizes the immediate return to home.
For some time now, at the Cardiology of Ravenna, a training course has been undertaken for both medical and nursing staff, coordinated respectively by the Director, Dr. Andrea Rubboli and the Coordinator. Dr. Daria Drudi, which led to the acquisition of Hypnotic communication techniques can control anxiety and pain thus eliminating the need for pharmacological sedation to perform various cardiological procedures.
These techniques, already applied for some time in various national and international structures, were recently used in two patients undergoing transesophageal echocardiogram at the Cardiology clinics of Ravenna.
The technique
Once they are lying on the bed and their consent has been obtained, the patients were invited to focus their attention on a specific point creating a multisensory contact with them through verbal, auditory and tactile stimuli which within a few minutes led to the desired modification of the state of consciousness. It was thus possible to carry out the transesophageal echocardiogram without the need for pharmacological sedation and with excellent tolerability on the part of the patients who then reported an excellent emotional experience characterized by the absence of anxiety and pain.
In consideration of the undeniable advantages of these techniques, their increasingly widespread use is expected in the clinical activity of Ravenna Cardiology, even in the context of invasive and therefore more painful procedures such as pacemaker implantation and coronary angiography, where they are excellent results have already been demonstrated.
