Article Tags: handheld ultrasound

A Prospective Cohort Study to Evaluate Needle Passes Using a Portable Ultrasound Device versus Traditional Landmark Approach for Epidural Anesthesia in a Busy Obstetric Tertiary Care Center

Antonio Gonzalez Fiol; Pedro Acevedo Rodriguez; Xiwen Zhao; Robert Gaiser; Adriana Herrera; Aymen Alian – Despite its many cited benefits, ultrasound guidance for neuraxial procedures is not widespread in anesthesiology. Some cited limitations include device cost and accessibility. We test the hypothesis that a handheld and relatively inexpensive ultrasound can improve neuraxial proficiency (e.g., decreased needle manipulations and block time). This prospective study compared the number of needle passes, redirections, and procedural time between epidural placed with a handheld ultrasound versus landmarks.

Can Untrained Patients Perform Their Own Skin and Soft Tissue Ultrasound Examination by Teleguidance?

Ammar Saati; Arthur Au; Aditi U. Joshi; Rebecca Davis; Frances Mae West; Resa E. Lewiss – The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic accelerated the use of telehealth with consumer adoption increasing from 11% in 2019 to 46% in 2020 [1,2]. A telehealth visit often replaced an in-person office visit for infection control and safety to the patient and healthcare team. Telehealth, the use of technology for remote medical encounters, can be an efficient way to connect doctor and patient synchronously or asynchronously. “Store and forward,” a form of asynchronous telemedicine utilizes uploaded pictures by patients for evaluation by a clinician. This aids the patient evaluation and improves the diagnostic capacity of a virtual examination.

Handheld Lung Ultrasound to Detect COVID-19 Pneumonia in Inpatients: A Prospective Cohort Study

Thomas F. Heyne; Kay Negishi; Daniel S. Choi; Ahad A. Al Saud; Lucas X. Marinacci; Patrick Y. Smithedajkul; Lily R. Devaraj; Brent P. Little; Dexter P. Mendoza; Efren J. Flores; Milena Petranovic; Steven P. Toal; Hamid Shokoohi; Andrew S. Liteplo; Benjamin P. Geisler – Even as newer viral variants have proven less deadly than the initial waves, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues to affect our world. Although critical to mitigate the spread of disease, rapid and accurate diagnosis of COVID-19 can be challenging.

The Impact of a Handheld Ultrasound Device in a Rheumatic Heart Disease Screening Program in Ethiopia

Zachary P. Kaltenborn; Anteneh Zewde; Jonathan D. Kirsch; Michelle Yates; Katelyn M. Tessier; Eileen Nemec; Ronald A. Johannsen – Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) affects 33 million people in low and middle income countries and is the leading cause of cardiovascular death among children and young adults. Penicillin prophylaxis prevents progression in asymptomatic disease. Efforts to expand echocardiographic screening are focusing on simplified protocols, non-physician ultrasonographers, and portable ultrasound devices, including handheld ultrasound. Recent advances support the use of single-view screening protocols. With the increasing availability and low cost of handheld devices, studies are needed to evaluate their performance in these settings.

Ultrasound Image Quality Comparison Between a Handheld Ultrasound Transducer and Mid-Range Ultrasound Machine  

Nayema Salimi, MD; Antonio Gonzalez Fiol, MD; N. David Yanez, PhD; Kristen L. Fardelmann, MD; Emily Harmon, MD; Katherine Kohari, MD; Sonya Abdel Razeq, MD; Urania Magriples, MD; Aymen Alian, MD – Not all labor and delivery floors are equipped with ultrasound machines which can serve the needs of both obstetricians and anesthesiologists. This cross-sectional, blinded, randomized observational study compares the image resolution (RES), detail (DET), and quality (IQ) acquired by a handheld ultrasound, the Butterfly iQ, and a mid-range mobile device, the Sonosite M-turbo US (SU), to evaluate their use as a shared resource.