title: Advantages and pitfalls of pocket ultrasound vs daily chest radiography in the coronary care unit: A single-user experience.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Pocket ultrasonography may enhance patient diagnosis and care. We sought to assess pocket ultrasound in detecting common conditions in the coronary care unit (CCU) compared to portable daily chest radiography (CXR) and conventional transthoracic echocardiography (TTE).
  
  
  METHODS
  An experienced pocket ultrasound user performed a pocket ultrasound examination for interstitial edema, pneumonia, central line seen in the right ventricle, pleural and pericardial effusions, left atrial enlargement, and cardiomegaly. Data were blindly compared to the radiologist CXR interpretation and cardiologist TTE interpretation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 102 CXR and pocket ultrasound examinations were performed in 66 patients. The most common CXR indication was "interval change" (37%) and finding central line (65%). Pocket ultrasound demonstrated overall good concordance with CXR ranging from 77% for pleural effusion to 92% for pneumonia. Additionally, the pocket ultrasound examination appeared to anticipate resolution of pulmonary edema prior to the CXR. Compared to TTE, pocket ultrasound had excellent sensitivity for cardiac findings with values ranging from 85% for left atrial enlargement to 100% for cardiomegaly, but limited specificity of cardiomegaly at just 51%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the CCU, bedside pocket ultrasound reliably diagnoses common conditions identified by CXR with the advantage of lack of ionizing radiation and the suggestion of detecting the resolution of pulmonary edema prior to CXR. Pitfalls include only modest concordance for pleural effusions and limited specificity for cardiomegaly. Larger, multicenter studies are needed to determine whether pocket ultrasound can reduce routine daily CXR in the CCU and other intensive care settings.
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Division, Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Colin T
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6543-0234
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Phillips
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Division, Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.|Department of Radiology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Warren J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Manning
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D057791:Cardiac Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D003325:Coronary Care Units; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008171:Lung Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015588:Observer Variation; D013902:Radiography, Thoracic / Q000379:methods*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
keywords: cardiac imaging; hand-carried ultrasound; ultrasonography