Copyright
©The Author(s) 2026. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Cardiol. Jan 26, 2026; 18(1): 112636
Published online Jan 26, 2026. doi: 10.4330/wjc.v18.i1.112636
Published online Jan 26, 2026. doi: 10.4330/wjc.v18.i1.112636
Extended venous excess ultrasound: A promising addition to point-of-care ultrasound-based venous congestion assessment
Abhilash Koratala, Division of Nephrology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI 53226, United States
Author contributions: The author conceived the review topic, conducted the literature search, analyzed the relevant studies, and drafted and revised the manuscript in its entirety. The author approved the final version for submission and is accountable for all aspects of the work.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Abhilash Koratala, Associate Professor, Senior Researcher, Division of Nephrology, Medical College of Wisconsin, 8701 W Watertown Plank Road, Room A 7633, Milwaukee, WI 53226, United States. akoratala@mcw.edu
Received: August 1, 2025
Revised: August 8, 2025
Accepted: November 12, 2025
Published online: January 26, 2026
Processing time: 167 Days and 4.2 Hours
Revised: August 8, 2025
Accepted: November 12, 2025
Published online: January 26, 2026
Processing time: 167 Days and 4.2 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Venous excess ultrasound has advanced bedside assessment of systemic venous congestion, but its standard components are not always accessible or reliable. The concept of extended venous excess ultrasound introduces alternative veins, including the internal jugular, femoral, splenic, and superior vena cava, to overcome these limitations and improve flexibility in real-world settings. Understanding these complementary windows is essential, especially in patients with altered anatomy or comorbidities like cirrhosis. While correlating Doppler findings with right atrial pressure is important, future studies must also link them to clinical outcomes and develop context-specific protocols for broader, safer clinical adoption.