Division of Cardiovascular Diseases:

Advanced Cardiac Echocardiography

The Scripps Clinic Echocardiography Laboratory provides services through two hospitals and seven outpatient clinic locations throughout San Diego County. The lab employs 40 trained sonographers and performs over 30,000 studies per year.

The Echocardiography Lab has long been a leader in introducing new technology into clinical practice. This has given the lab a pivotal role in the development of multiple clinical programs in cardiology. Examples include the adoption of advanced three-dimensional echocardiography for structural heart disease intervention guidance and strain imaging in the cardio-oncology and heart failure programs.

The Scripps Echocardiography Lab also founded one of the first dedicated Advanced Structural Imaging fellowships in the country, training future leaders in the guidance of minimally invasive procedures for structural heart disease.

Michael Smith, MD FASE

  • Director, Scripps Clinic Cardiac Echocardiography Lab
  • Areas of interest:
  • Valvular Heart Disease
  • Structural Heart Disease
  • Noninvasive Stress Testing
  • Noninvasive Exercise Hemodynamic Assessment

Steven Romero, MD FASE

  • Director, Procedural Imaging
  • Areas of Interest:
  • Structural Heart Disease
  • Intraoperative Echocardiography

David Rubenson, MD FASE

  • Founding Director, Scripps Clinic Cardiac Echocardiography Lab
  • Areas of Interest:
  • Valvular Heart Disease
  • Structural Heart Disease

Kristen Billick, ACS, RDCS FASE

  • Manager, Cardiac Scripps Clinic Echocardiography Lab

Hayley Engstrom, ACS, RDCS

  • Lead Educator, Scripps Clinic Cardiac Echocardiography Lab

Featured Services

  • Transthoracic echocardiography

  • Transesophageal echocardiography with advanced 3D imaging

  • Exercise stress echocardiography

  • Dobutamine stress echocardiography

  • Supine bicycle hemodynamic echocardiography

Recognitions & Awards

  • The first echocardiography lab in the San Diego region to be awarded accreditation from the Intersocietal Accreditation Committee (IAC)

  • Creators of one of the first Advanced Structural Imaging fellowships in the country

The Scripps Echocardiography Lab founded one of the first dedicated Advanced Structural Imaging fellowships in the country, training in the guidance of minimally invasive procedures for structural heart disease. Our training program teaches advanced echocardiography to cardiology fellows, residents, and sonographers. For more information, please visit Graduate Medical Education.

The lab participates in numerous clinical research projects across the spectrum of Cardiovascular sub-specialty clinics.