"Everything should be as simple as can be, but not simpler. " Albert Einstein The past decade has been marked by a trend from invasive to noninvasive intraoperative monitoring. As far as respiratory monitoring is concerned, initial experience with transcutaneous gas analysis laid the foundation for widespread clinical use of pulse oximetry and end-tidal gas analysis. It has been long recognized that echo cardiography might become an equally useful adjunct to cardiovascular monitoring. The fundamental purpose of cardiac monitoring is to warn the anesthesiologist of existing or impending...