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TEE: An Interactive Board Review on CD-ROM

2003; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1097/00000539-200305000-00083

1526-7598

Bonnie L. Milas,

TEE: An Interactive Board Review on CD-ROM D. S. Morse and C. D. Collard, eds. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, 2002. $225. TEE: An Interactive Board Review, is a well-designed, highly useful tool for preparation for the video portion of the National Board of Echocardiography (NBE) Perioperative TEE Certification Exam and is written by cardiac anesthesiologists for anesthesiologists or cardiologists preparing for the NBE TEE exam. This CD-ROM runs on either Windows or Macintosh systems and requires Netscape 4.78 or Internet Explorer 4.73 or higher (Netscape only for MAC systems) and QuickTime plug-in. Both Netscape 4.78 and QuickTime are provided for installation on this two-disc CD-ROM set. The CD-ROM begins with a brief introduction that includes links to the National Board of Echocardiography and the NBE TEE exam. The remainder of the CD-ROM is subdivided into three sections: the content, key terms, and the exam mode. Each section is designed differently based on the objectives of the individual viewer. The contents mode is presented similar to a textbook, where video segments are presented with questions provided next to the video screen. The video segments are presented as nine anatomically based chapters. This mode is not timed, and immediate feedback is provided. The feedback is in the form of answers with explanation and highlighted references. The key terms mode is based on 21 key words taken from the content outline for the NBE TEE exam. This mode is designed for the individual seeking specific topics for study. It is presented in a similar manner as the content mode, where video images are viewed with their corresponding questions. Feedback is provided and this mode is also untimed. The final section is the exam mode, which closely parallels the NBE video portion of the exam. Twelve video segments with 2–5 multiple choice questions are provided in a 40-minute period. The format for this section is as follows: view video, 60 seconds to answer questions, review video, 60 seconds to check answers to questions. No feedback is given until the exam is completed. The video portions cannot be replayed, similar to the actual NBE video exam. At the end of the simulated exam, a score is provided with a table of the questions, the answer chosen, and the correct answer. Individual questions can be selected for review with feedback provided. Morse and Collard’s Interactive Board Review would be most useful for those individuals preparing to take the NBE Perioperative TEE exam. The exam mode is particularly useful. This mode of testing, viewing video segments and answering questions in a timed fashion, is unfamiliar to most anesthesiologists and cardiologists who are not certified in transthoracic echocardiography. This CD-ROM provides practice handling a different style of examination in a non-stressful, non-testing situation. The CD-ROM as a whole also allows the participant to become acquainted with assessing TEE images with the inability to obtain additional views or adjust image gain, contrast, or image quality. The corresponding questions appropriately focused on clinical decisions regarding diagnosis, functional status, treatment, management of complications, and performing necessary calculations. The participant must make decisions based on the information that can be garnered from the presented TEE image. This is good practice for the examination, where the circumstances are similar. In order to prepare for the additional written portion of the NBE Perioperative TEE examination, one would need to undertake a comprehensive review of a standard TEE textbook. The shortcomings of this TEE review were limited. There were a few TEE images in which the structures were not defined enough to make confident decisions, but this did not detract from the overall usefulness of the CD-ROM. The inclusion of dual screen or quad screen displays, particularly in the assessment of global and regional ventricular function would provide additional skill enhancement to the participant. This was a mode of assessment presented on the examination that is not represented on this CD-ROM. An introductory section addressing how to quickly assess TEE video images might be of benefit to the novice. Finally, the TEE images and questions presented were the same in all three sections of the CD-ROM. Having different images and questions in all three modes would provide a more extensive review, but the editors may have been limited in keeping their program as a two-disk CD-ROM set or maintaining an affordable program. Morse and Collard’s interactive CD-ROM provides an easy-to-use, well-organized preparation for the video portion of the NBE examination that is otherwise not readily available. This program aptly provides exposure and practice with an unfamiliar mode of testing that can be both stressful and frustrating. The cost of the program is money well spent.