scholarly journals A prospective observational study depicting role of lung ultrasound in pediatric pneumonias

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (9) ◽  
pp. 1566
Author(s):  
Ashish Saklani ◽  
Ashwani Tomar ◽  
Sumala Kapila ◽  
Shyam Lal Kaushik ◽  
Anjali Mahajan

Background: Pneumonia is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in children under five years of age. Chest x-ray poses radiation hazard to children and thus an alternative safe imaging modality must be explored for pediatric pneumonias.Methods: This prospective observational study included all children below 18 years of age. Majority of patients were below five years of age. All clinically suspicious patients were subjected to chest x-ray and lung ultrasound (LUS). Chest x-ray was considered as imaging diagnostic standard for pneumonia. Consolidation and dynamic air bronchogram were looked on LUS.Results: A total of 55 patients were included in study with 26 (47.2%) as infants and up to 47 (85.3%) as under five children. Out of 55 cases 32 cases (58.20%) were diagnosed as lobar pneumonia while 23 (41.8%) as bronchopneumonia on chest x-ray. LUS demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity of 90.63% and 100% for lobar pneumonia and 86.96 and 90.63% for bronchopneumonia respectively. Dynamic air bronchogram sign was found in all cases of lobar pneumonia on LUS and with sensitivity of 73.91% in bronchopneumonia.Conclusions: LUS proved itself as highly sensitive and specific modality for detecting consolidation and owing to safe non ionizing nature of ultrasound, it must be considered as an alternative to chest x-ray as an imaging diagnostic tool for pediatric pneumonia.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Galetin ◽  
Mark Schieren ◽  
Benjamin Marks ◽  
Jerome Defosse ◽  
Erich Stoelben

Summary Background Chest X‑ray (CXR) after thoracic surgery contributes to patient discomfort and costs and is of limited therapeutic value. Lung ultrasound (LU) for pneumothorax may be an alternative to CXR, but diagnostic accuracy data are heterogeneous and biased by insufficient sonographic technique and patient selection. Reported sensitivities range from 0.21 to 1.0. We evaluated the sensitivity of LU on the first day after thoracic surgery under routine conditions. Methods We performed a prospective observational study (trial-ID DRKS00014557). Consecutive patients undergoing lung resection received standardized LU in addition to routine CXR on the first postoperative day. Ultrasound examiner and radiologist were blinded to corresponding X‑ray and ultrasound findings. CXR was used as reference to determine diagnostic test performance of ultrasound. The conformity of sonography- and routine-based therapeutic decisions was evaluated. Results A total of 68 patients were examined. The mean duration of ultrasound was 145 ± 64 s. CXR identified 23 patients with pneumothorax with a mean apex-to-cupola size of 1.5 ± 1.0 cm. Ultrasound detected 18 patients with pneumothorax. The computed sensitivity of LU was 0.48 (95% confidence interval [0.36; 0.60]). Specificity was between 0.81 and 1.0, the negative predictive value 0.76 [0.66; 0.86]. The sensitivity of CXR was 0.56 [0.44; 0.68]. Air leakage via chest tube correlated weakly with CXR (spearman’s rho = 0.26) and moderately with LU (rho = 0.43). The conformity between sonographically based recommendations and the actual therapy based on routine diagnostics was 96%. Conclusions Sensitivity of ultrasound for pneumothorax detection nearly reached CXR and resulted in equally safe patient management. Our data can serve as a pilot study for upcoming larger-scaled controlled trials.


Diagnostics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 447 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hasse Møller-Sørensen ◽  
Jakob Gjedsted ◽  
Vibeke Lind Jørgensen ◽  
Kristoffer Lindskov Hansen

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the need for an accessible, point-of-care and accurate imaging modality for pulmonary assessment. COVID-19 pneumonia is mainly monitored with chest X-ray, however, lung ultrasound (LUS) is an emerging tool for pulmonary evaluation. In this study, patients with verified COVID-19 disease hospitalized at the intensive care unit and treated with ventilator and extracorporal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) were evaluated with LUS for pulmonary changes. LUS findings were compared to C-reactive protein (CRP) and ventilator settings. Ten patients were included and scanned the day after initiation of ECMO and thereafter every second day until, if possible, weaned from ECMO. In total 38 scans adding up to 228 cineloops were recorded and analyzed off-line with the use of a constructed LUS score. The study indicated that patients with a trend of lower LUS scores over time were capable of being weaned from ECMO. LUS score was associated to CRP (R = 0.34; p < 0.03) and compliance (R = 0.60; p < 0.0001), with the strongest correlation to compliance. LUS may be used as a primary imaging modality for pulmonary assessment reducing the use of chest X-ray in COVID-19 patients treated with ventilator and ECMO.


Author(s):  
Emily Schapka ◽  
Jerica Gee ◽  
John W. Cyrus ◽  
Gregory Goldstein ◽  
Kara Greenfield ◽  
...  

AbstractFluid overload is a common complication of critical illness, associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Pulmonary fluid status is difficult to evaluate clinically and many clinicians utilize chest X-ray (CXR) to identify fluid overload. Adult data have shown lung ultrasound (LUS) to be a more sensitive modality. Our objective was to determine the performance of LUS for detecting fluid overload, with comparison to CXR, in critically ill children. We conducted a systematic review using multiple electronic databases and included studies from inception to November 15, 2020. The sensitivity and specificity of each test were evaluated. Out of 1,209 studies screened, 4 met eligibility criteria. Overall, CXR is reported to have low sensitivity (44–58%) and moderate specificity (52–94%) to detect fluid overload, while LUS is reported to have high sensitivity (90–100%) and specificity (94–100%). Overall, the quality of evidence was moderate, and the gold standard was different in each study. Our systematic review suggests LUS is more sensitive and specific than CXR to identify pulmonary fluid overload in critically ill children. Considering the clinical burden of fluid overload and the relative ease of obtaining LUS, further evaluation of LUS to diagnose volume overload is warranted.


2020 ◽  
pp. 102490792096932
Author(s):  
Ruiting Li ◽  
Hong Liu ◽  
Hong Qi ◽  
Yin Yuan ◽  
Xiaojing Zou ◽  
...  

Background: An outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) took place in Wuhan, China, by the end of 2019, and the disease continues to spread all over the world. The number of patients is increasing rapidly, a large number of infected patients is critically ill, and the mortality is high. However, information on COVID-19 patients is limited, and its clinical characteristics have not been fully studied. Objectives: To compare the performances of point-of-care lung ultrasound (LUS) and bedside chest X-ray in assessing the condition of COVID-19 patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Methods: This observational study enrolled 42 COVID-19 patients with ARDS who were admitted to the Department of Critical Care Medicine of the Wuhan Union Hospital from February to April 2020. The point-of-care LUS characteristics of the COVID-19 patients with ARDS were summarized, and the performances of LUS and bedside chest X-ray in assessing the patient’s condition were compared. Results: Most of the 42 patients were elderly individuals with chronic clinical diseases. The proportion of patients older than 60 years old was 85.7%. All patients were given invasive mechanical ventilation; eight (19.0%) of them received venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support. LUS has evident advantages in detecting lung consolidation, patchy shadows, and pleural thickening, and pleural line changes in particular. The receiver operating characteristic analysis indicated that the sensitivity, Youden index, and kappa value for detecting COVID-19 patients with ARDS were higher for LUS than the chest X-ray. Conclusion: LUS has better diagnostic accuracy and sensitivity in COVID-19 patients with ARDS than the chest X-ray.


Author(s):  
Hiroshi Koyama ◽  
Wirongrong Chierakul ◽  
Prakaykaew Charunwatthana ◽  
Natpatou Sanguanwongse ◽  
Benjaluck Phonrat ◽  
...  

Lung ultrasound (LUS) is performed for several conditions and is a more sensitive method of detecting pathological pulmonary changes than chest X-ray. Therefore, LUS for individuals with dengue could be an important tool for the early detection of pleural effusions and pulmonary edema signifying capillary plasma leakage, which is the hallmark of severe dengue pathophysiology. We conducted a prospective observational study of pulmonary changes identifiable with LUS in dengue patients admitted to the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Mahidol University, Bangkok, and the Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute, Nonthaburi, Thailand. The LUS findings were described according to standard criteria, including the presence of A, B1, B2, and C patterns in eight chest regions and the presence of pleural effusions. From November 2017 to April 2018, 50 patients with dengue were included in the study. LUS was performed during the Shonna febrile phase for nine patients (18%) and during the critical-convalescence phase for 41 patients (82%). A total of 33 patients (66%) had at least one abnormality discovered using LUS. Abnormal LUS findings were observed more frequently during the critical-convalescence phase (N = 30/41; 73%) than during the febrile phase (N = 3/9; 33%) (P = 0.047). Abnormal aeration patterns were observed in 31 patients (62%). Only B patterns with only multiple B lines were observed in 21 patients (42%); of these patients, three had already exhibited these during the febrile phase (N = 3). C patterns (N = 10; 24%), pleural effusion (N = 10; 24%), and subpleural abnormalities (N = 11; 27%) were observed only during the critical-convalescence phase. LUS can detect signs of capillary leakage, including interstitial edema and pleural effusions, early during the course of dengue.


Diagnostics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 373
Author(s):  
María Mateos González ◽  
Gonzalo García de Casasola Sánchez ◽  
Francisco Javier Teigell Muñoz ◽  
Kevin Proud ◽  
Davide Lourdo ◽  
...  

Point-of-care lung ultrasound (LUS) is an attractive alternative to chest X-ray (CXR), but its diagnostic accuracy compared to CXR has not been well studied in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. We conducted a prospective observational study to assess the correlation between LUS and CXR findings in COVID-19 patients. Ninety-six patients with a clinical diagnosis of COVID-19 underwent an LUS exam and CXR upon presentation. Physicians blinded to the CXR findings performed all LUS exams. Detection of pulmonary infiltrates by CXR versus LUS was compared between patients categorized as suspected or confirmed COVID-19 based on reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. Sensitivities and correlation by Kappa statistic were calculated between LUS and CXR. LUS detected pulmonary infiltrates more often than CXR in both suspected and confirmed COVID-19 subjects. The most common LUS abnormalities were discrete B-lines, confluent B-lines, and small subpleural consolidations. Most important, LUS detected unilateral or bilateral pulmonary infiltrates in 55% of subjects with a normal CXR. Substantial agreement was demonstrated between LUS and CXR for normal, unilateral or bilateral findings (Κ = 0.48 (95% CI 0.34 to 0.63)). In patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19, LUS detected pulmonary infiltrates more often than CXR, including more than half of the patients with a normal CXR.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chloé Chevallier Lugon ◽  
Aileen Kharat ◽  
Paola M. Soccal ◽  
Idris Guessous ◽  
Hervé Spechbach ◽  
...  

Background: Lung ultrasound (LUS) has a good performance with a high sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of pneumonia compared with chest X-ray, and it has been extensively used to assess patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to evaluate the potential advantages of the regular use of LUS for the assessment of the severity and prognosis of COVID-19 pneumonia and to propose an adapted protocol with its inclusion in current local validated and published guidelines.Methods: This is a single-center prospective study conducted during the first (April–May 2020) and second (October 2020–January 2021) waves of the SARS-CoV2 pandemic in Switzerland. All adult patients presenting to dedicated test centers with a suspicion of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 pneumonia and not requiring hospitalization at the time of diagnosis were included. Patients with confirmed COVID-19 pneumonia were referred to an ambulatory follow-up unit at our institution for reassessment, with the inclusion of the use of LUS in a random selection. Descriptive statistics were calculated for demographics using percentages, means, and standard deviations according to the distribution of variables.Results: Eighty-eight ambulatory patients with a confirmed COVID-19 pneumonia were included (men = 57 [59%]; mean age, 52.1 ± 13.5 years). Among these, 19 (21%) were hospitalized and none died. Twenty-five lung assessments by ultrasound were performed during the follow-up consultation. All were consistent with the clinical examination and confirmed the clinician's opinion.Conclusion: The use of a standardized pleuro-pulmonary ultrasound protocol for ambulatory patients with COVID-19 could help to reduce the use of chest X-rays and improve overall management at the time of referral and eventual follow-up. However, a specific study including LUS in a systematic approach should be performed to evaluate the outcome of patients according to findings.


Author(s):  
Xiaolei Liu ◽  
Shuyu Si ◽  
Yiyi Guo ◽  
Hui Wu

Lung ultrasound is a technique that has rapidly developed in recent years. It is a low-cost, radiation-free, and easy-to-operate tool that can be repeatedly performed at the bedside. Compared to chest X-ray, lung ultrasound has high sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome, transient tachypnoea of newborns and pneumothorax. Lung ultrasound has been widely used in neonatal intensive care units. However, it has limitations in some other lung diseases and cannot fully substitute for chest X-ray or CT. This review describes these limitations in detail and highlights that if clinical symptoms are not effectively alleviated after medical treatment or the clinical presentation is not compatible with the ultrasound appearances, then chest X-ray or CT scanning should be performed to avoid misdiagnosis and mistreatment.


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