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Diagnostic role of thoracic ultrasound in patients with acute respiratory failure at emergency service

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Abstract

Background and aim

This study aimed to elucidate the effectiveness of bedside thoracic ultrasound according to BLUE protocol and to investigate its superiority over other imaging methods in the emergency service.

Methods

A total of 120 patients admitted to our institution’s emergency care department due to respiratory distress have been enrolled in this prospective research. Thorax USG has been performed in the right and left hemithorax at the points specified in the BLUE protocol for each patient. Pleural sliding motion, A-lines, B-lines, consolidation, effusion, and the presence of barcode signs were evaluated individually. Age, sex, comorbid diseases, other radiological examination findings, laboratory findings, final clinical diagnosis, and hospitalization-discharge status of the patients were recorded.

Results

When a correct diagnosis of pneumonia has been analyzed for imaging techniques, the diagnostic rate of chest radiography was 83.3%, CT was 100.0%, and USG was 66.6%. The correct diagnostic rate of chest radiography was 94.5%; CT and USG were 100.0%. The correct diagnosis of pulmonary edema on chest radiography was 94.5%; CT and USG were 100.0%. While the correct diagnosis of pleural effusion on chest radiography and CT was 100.0%, it was 92.3% in USG imaging. Finally, CT and USG imaging performed better than chest radiography in patients with pneumothorax (chest radiography 80.0%, CT and USG 100%).

Conclusion

USG imaging could be preferred in the diagnosis of pneumonia, pulmonary edema, pleural effusion, pneumothorax, pulmonary embolism, and differential diagnosis at the emergency service.

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Availability of data and materials

Data and materials are reachable from hospital automation information systems.

Abbreviations

APE:

Acute pulmonary edema

ARF:

Acute respiratory failure

BLUE:

Bedside lung ultrasound in emergency protocol

BNP:

B-type natriuretic peptide

CHF:

Congestive heart failure

COPD:

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

CT:

Computerized tomography

ICU:

Intensive care unit

PE:

Pulmonary embolism

SPSS:

Statistical Package for the Social Sciences

USG:

Ultrasound imaging

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Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Emergency Medicine, Adana City Research and Training Hospital, Health Science University, 01060, Adana, Turkey

    Samet Ocel & Mustafa Oguz Tugcan

  2. Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Çukurova University, Adana, Turkey

    Zeynep Kekec

  3. Emergency Medicine Clinic, Yuregir State Hospital, Adana, Turkey

    Omer Taskin

  4. 5 Ocak State Hospital, Emergency Medicine Clinic, Adana, Turkey

    Fuat Belli

Authors
  1. Samet Ocel
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  2. Zeynep Kekec
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  4. Fuat Belli
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  5. Mustafa Oguz Tugcan
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Contributions

Dr. Samet Ocel, Dr. Zeynep Kekec, Dr. Omer Taskin, Dr. Fuat Belli, Dr. Mustafa Oguz Tugcan: conceptualization, methodology, investigation, and writing—original draft. Dr. Samet Ocel, Dr. Zeynep Kekec, Dr. Omer Taskin, Dr. Fuat Belli, Dr. Mustafa Oguz Tugcan: resources, formal analysis, and writing—review and editing. Dr. Samet Ocel, Dr. Zeynep Kekec, Dr. Omer Taskin, Dr. Fuat Belli, Dr. Mustafa Oguz Tugcan: conceptualization, methodology, and writing—review and editing. All authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Samet Ocel.

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Ethical approval

The ethics committee of Cukurova University approved the study.

Compliance with ethical standards

The study was performed according to the recommendations set by the Declaration of Helsinki on Medical Research involving Human Subjects.

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This manuscript was carried out in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and Good Clinical Practice guidelines.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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The author declare no competing interests.

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Ocel, S., Kekec, Z., Taskin, O. et al. Diagnostic role of thoracic ultrasound in patients with acute respiratory failure at emergency service. Ir J Med Sci (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-024-03618-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-024-03618-4

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