title: How to do it: bedside ultrasound to assist lumbar puncture.
abstract: For many neurologists, lumbar puncture is the only practical procedure that they undertake on a regular basis. Although anaesthetists and emergency physicians routinely employ ultrasound to assist lumbar puncture, neurologists do not. In this article, we outline the technique that we use for an ultrasound-assisted lumbar puncture, together with the evidence base that suggests that ultrasound has significant benefits. We aim to raise awareness of a method that can make lumbar puncture more likely to succeed and to be more comfortable for the patient.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Leeds General Infirmary, Leeds, UK.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4786-1356
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, Hull, UK.
authors.forename: Modar
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7178-4725
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Khalil
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Mid-Yorkshire NHS Trust, Dewsbury, UK.
authors.forename: Asoka
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Weerasinghe
authors.affiliation: Department of Anaesthesia, Mid-Yorkshire NHS Trust, Dewsbury, UK.
authors.forename: Anu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sharma
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, Harrogate, UK.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Davey
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D000067716:Point-of-Care Testing; D013129:Spinal Puncture / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D018084:Ultrasonography, Interventional / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*
keywords: CSF; ULTRASOUND; lumbar puncture