An Insight about Point of Care Ultrasound; History, Role, and Interpretation at Respiratory Intensive Care Unit

Abstract

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) refers to the use of portable ultrasonography at the patient’s bedside for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes performed “real time” by the provider. The use of ultrasound has greatly expanded over past years with its increasing usefulness being realized in different clinical areas. It has now become the point-of-care tool in intensive care units (ICU) with varied diagnostic and therapeutic applicability, rightfully earning the nomenclature of ‘ultrasound stethoscope. A generation of physicians will need to be trained to view this technology as an extension of their senses, just as many generations have viewed the stethoscope. That development will require the medical education community to embrace and incorporate the technology throughout the curriculum. The importance of ultrasound in ICU can be underscored by its utility in various scenarios. Application of cardiac ultrasound by other clinicians, such as intensivists focused cardiac ultrasound (FOCUS), allows brisk diagnosis of acute cardiovascular pathologies in a noninvasive manner. The key elements during FOCUS in shock patients can be evaluated using SIMPLE approach. Recognizing that POCUS has the potential to be an important tool for diagnosis and clinical management, some medical schools have embraced the technology to augment anatomy lessons, and as an adjunct to the physical examination. In clinical clerkships, students are increasingly familiarized with ultrasound at the POC, either as a part of their training or incidentally in clinical practice. In graduate medical education, ultrasound training is required and fairly standardized in emergency medicine residency programs in the United States.