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Performing bedside ultrasound is faster, cheaper, and safer than transporting a patient for chest computed tomography (CT), but how useful is it in the initial assessment of blunt trauma patients? Researchers at a level 1 trauma center in France analyzed data from 45 patients who received immediate ultrasound by a trained physician on emergency department (ED) arrival.
Ultrasound was completed on all patients in less than 10 minutes. Examiners assessed 8 areas of the chest wall for sonographic signs of pneumothorax, hemothorax, and lung contusion. Each area was assigned a score from 0 to 2 (no, partial, or complete contusion), with a maximum score of 16.
CT identified 30 pneumothoraces, 25 hemothoraces, and 60 pulmonary contusions. Nineteen o…