Recently I traveled to Leon, Nicaragua, along with Dr. John Paar,  to participate in a study through the National Institute of Health to determine the prevalence of rheumatic heart disease in children ages five to fifteen years old. There are other technologists and cardiologists participating in the study as well, including Ruben Centeno from UNC Hospital Pediatric Echo.   I truly believe that one of the greatest assets a sonographer can hold is a willingness to continue learning.  There are many opportunities for learning but this kind of experience carries a variety of thresholds to education.

The study I went to work on is being done in order to determine whether or not there is a need to develop a vaccine against the serotypes of group A beta hemolytic streptococcus which cause rheumatic fever.  In this study several teams consisting of a cardiologist and an appropriately credentialed echocardiographer travel to Leon to evaluate a randomly selected group from specific regions of the area being studied.