Automatic cooling of the esophageal probe

When using the Philips transesophageal probe, you may have encountered the following situations, especially in color or real-time 3D mode: 

This prompt indicates that the automatic cooling function is about to start. Please reduce the power or adjust the patient's body temperature.

The transesophageal probe has a built-in temperature sensor near the distal end. This sensor monitors the probe's temperature to prevent potential esophageal tissue burns. The actual patient's body temperature must be obtained to accurately estimate the distal end temperature.

By default, the diagnostic system defaults the patient's body temperature to 37°C. Ifthe actual patient's body temperature is higher than 37°C, the actual body temperature must be manually entered.

The automatic cooling function provides warning information under two circumstances:

• When the temperature reaches 41.0 degrees Celsius, it indicates that automatic cooling of the TEE probe is about to begin.

• When the temperature reaches 42.5 degrees Celsius (108.5 degrees Fahrenheit), it displays that the TEE probe is undergoing automatic cooling, and the diagnostic system will automatically stop scanning.

During the use of the transesophageal probe, it is recommended to pay attention to the following aspects:

1. Ensure the transesophageal probe's safe temperature

To ensure patient safety and avoid unnecessary interruptions during the scanning process, please follow these recommendations:

• Input the accurate patient core body temperature to ensure the accuracy of the distal end temperature.

• Before inserting the TEE probe, lower the probe temperature by reducing the ultrasound output. Reducing the ultrasound output will only have a minimal impact on image quality.

• If the probe temperature starts to rise when using high-power modes such as Live 3D, color, tissue harmonic imaging, and Doppler, temporarily switching to basic 2D mode or freezing the image can help cool the probe.

• To avoid esophageal burns in adult patients, when the temperature of the distal end exceeds 42°C, the imaging time should be shortened as much as possible. When the temperature reaches 42°C or higher, the ultrasound irradiation time should be limited to less than 10 minutes.

• Currently, there is insufficient data on the heat tolerance of the esophagus in neonatal and pediatric patients, but these patients are likely to be more susceptible to injury than adults. When the distal end temperature exceeds 41°C  , shorten the imaging time as much as possible.

2. Patient Body Temperature

Inputting the patient's body temperature allows the automatic cooling function to more accurately calculate the distal end temperature, thereby preventing unnecessary interference during scanning. If the patient's body temperature is above normal levels, inputting the temperature can avoid exposing the patient to excessively high temperatures.

On the display screen, the patient's body temperature is marked as Pat.T, and the probe temperature is marked as TEE T.

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