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Scrubbing needles: a simple and costless technique to improve needle tip visibility during US-guided liver interventions

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Abstract

Aims

To evaluate the echogenicity of a commercially available needle, modified on the tip, by comparing two groups of patients undergoing to percutaneous biliary drainage.

Methods

In this retrospective analysis 16 percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTBD) procedures performed on 16 oncologic patients were evaluated. Patients were randomly divided into two groups of eight subjects each; in the first group, a standard needle was adopted (group A); in the second group, the needle was manually modified to create a rough surface (group B), by scrubbing the tip with an 11 scalpel blade for 150 s all around its surface. To objectively quantify US needle tip visibility, the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) was calculated analyzing B-mode images by positioning region of interests in correspondence of needle tip and liver parenchyma.

Results

Needle tip echogenicity was significantly higher in group B where the needle tip was modified compared to control group A (p value = 0.014). CNR, considered to objectively evaluate differences among needle tip echogenicity, was significantly higher in group B with respect to control group A (p value = 0.018).

Conclusions

The proposed method, scrubbing a 22 gauge commercially available needle tip with a scalpel blade, represents an effective technique to improve needle visibility during US-guided punctures of the liver.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Vascular and Interventional Radiology, Cardarelli Hopistal, Via Cardarelli 9, 80131, Naples, Italy

    Francesco Giurazza, Fabio Corvino & Raffaella Niola

  2. Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Largo Agostino Gemelli 8, 00136, Rome, Italy

    Andrea Contegiacomo

  3. Radiology 1 Unit, Dipartimento Di Scienze Mediche, chirurgiche e tecnologie avanzate, Università Degli Studi Di Catania, Via S. Sofia 98, 95100, Catania, Italy

    Antonello Basile

Authors
  1. Francesco Giurazza
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  2. Andrea Contegiacomo
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  3. Fabio Corvino
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  4. Antonello Basile
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  5. Raffaella Niola
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Francesco Giurazza.

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Research involving human participants

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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

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Giurazza, F., Contegiacomo, A., Corvino, F. et al. Scrubbing needles: a simple and costless technique to improve needle tip visibility during US-guided liver interventions. J Ultrasound 25, 73–78 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40477-021-00561-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40477-021-00561-3

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