The role of PoCUS in the assessment of COVID-19 patients

Abstract

The Coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic has increased the burden of stress on the global healthcare system in 2020. Point of care ultrasound (PoCUS) is used effectively in the management of pulmonary, cardiac and vascular pathologies. POCUS is the use of traditional ultrasound imaging techniques in a focused binary manner to answer a specific set of clinical questions. This is an imaging technique that delivers no radiation, is inexpensive, ultraportable and provides results instantaneously to the physician operator at the bedside. In regard to the pandemic, PoCUS has played a significant adjunctive role in the diagnosis and management of co-morbidities associated with COVID-19. PoCUS also offers an alternative method to image obstetric patients and the pediatric population safely in accordance with the ALARA principle. Finally, there have been numerous PoCUS protocols describing the effective use of this technology during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ultrasound assessment of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia: a literature review for the primary care physician

“…POCUS is a non-invasive technique to screen COVID-19 patients safely, using the correct disinfection protocol of the ultrasound transducer [ 11 ]. It is a method of low cost, rapid application and allows the patients to avoid exposure to radiations of other imaging techniques such as computed tomography.…”

The European Society of Paediatric Radiology’s position statement on point-of-care ultrasound

“…During the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, POCUS performed by trained general practitioners and in other prehospital care settings was well accepted [6][7][8].…”

Ultrasound, the handyman serving our whole populations in the post COVID-19 pandemic

“…The need to assess Sars-Cov-2 infected patients, who often suffer primarily from a pulmonary involvement and for which there was, and still there is a need to restrict the access to hospital only to those in clear need to avoid an overwhelming of health care facilities, has put ultrasound on the stage. Lung ultrasound has in fact rapidly become part of the assessment of such patients, gaining large success [12][13][14]. It is relatively easy to learn, making physicians more confident in the decision to keep patients at home or to refer them to hospital and has become seamlessly integrated in the clinical sonographic assessment of such patients.…”

“…Mit der Untersuchung von SARS-CoV-2-infizierten Patienten, bei denen in erster Linie häufig die Lunge betroffen war und bei denen es notwendig war, nur die Erkrankten mit eindeutigem Bedarf zu hospitalisieren, um eine Überlastung des Gesundheitssystems zu vermeiden, wurde der Ultraschall ins Rampenlicht gestellt. Tatsächlich wurde Lungenultraschall schnell in die Untersuchung solcher Patienten integriert und hat große Erfolge erzielt [12][13][14] Er ist relativ leicht zu erlernen und gibt den Ärzten mehr Entscheidungssicherheit, ob Patienten zu Hause bleiben oder ins Krankenhaus überwiesen werden sollen, und hat sich nahtlos in die klinisch-sonografische Beurteilung dieser Patienten integriert. In dieser Ausgabe der Zeitschrift wird das Potenzial des Lungenultraschalls hervorgehoben [15].…”