title: Impact and appropriateness of the emergency ultrasonography in a tertiary care hospital.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To quantify the notion of the impact of ultrasonography (US) on and the appropriateness of its use in, the diagnosis and treatment of emergency conditions.
  
  
  METHODS
  A prospective study was conducted between September 2006 andApri 2007 at a tertiary care hospital. US was performed or supervised by experienced staff radiologists during the working hours and by final year radiology residents during the off-hours. Data collection forms were filled by radiology residents. The final discharge diagnoses were obtained from medical charts and computerized records. Data collected included age, gender provisional diagnosis, ultrasound findings, the discharge diagnosis, time of ultrasound examination, other radiologic investigations and therapeutic interventions. Outcomes included the impact, appropriateness, and diagnostic accuracy of US.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Six hundred eighteen patients underwent 702 emergency ultrasound examinations. The median age was 51 years. Approximately 50% were male. The anatomical region most commonly examined was the abdomen (80%). US had an impact on clinical management in 85% of all examinations. Appropriate use of US was seen in 64% of all examinations. The overall accuracy of US was 90%. Factors associated with higher impact included suspected urological, vascular and musculoskeletal conditions, while vague abdominal conditions were associated with less impact.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The impact of US on the management of emergency conditions was high and most requests for US were appropriate. However a more efficient use of emergency US is still possible, especially for abdominal conditions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, the Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Bussanee
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wibulpolprasert
authors.forename: Cholatip
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wiratkapun
authors.forename: Janjira
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jatchavala
authors.forename: Nittakarn
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Suraseepat
authors.forename: Panuwat
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lertsithichai
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004638:Emergency Treatment / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*