Impact of Anesthesia, Positive Pressure Ventilation and Modality of Imaging on the Echocardiographic Assessment of the Severity of Aortic Regurgitation

The goal of this observational study is to assess the impact of imaging modality (trans-thoracic echo (TTE) vs trans-esophageal echo (TEE)), anesthesia and positive pressure ventilation on the grading of aortic insufficiency. Patients scheduled for cardiac surgery and in whom a TEE is going to be performed intra-operatively will be enrolled. The grading of the aortic insufficiency will be compared between a TTE performed immediately before the induction of general anesthesia end the TEE performed after induction of general anesthesia.