European Respiratory Society statement on thoracic ultrasound

Abstract

Thoracic ultrasound is increasingly considered to be an essential tool for the pulmonologist. It is used in diverse clinical scenarios, including as an adjunct to clinical decision making for diagnosis, a real-time guide to procedures, and a predictor or measurement of treatment response. The aim of this European Respiratory Society task force was to produce a statement on thoracic ultrasound for pulmonologists using thoracic ultrasound within the field of respiratory medicine. The multidisciplinary panel performed a review of the literature, addressing major areas of thoracic ultrasound practice and application. The selected major areas include equipment and technique, assessment of the chest wall, parietal pleura, pleural effusion, pneumothorax, interstitial syndrome, lung consolidation, diaphragm assessment, intervention guidance, training, and the patient perspective. Despite the growing evidence supporting the use of thoracic ultrasound, the published literature still contains a paucity of data in some important fields. Key research questions for each of the major areas were identified, which serve to facilitate future multi-centre collaborations and research to further consolidate an evidence-based use of thoracic ultrasound, for the benefit of the many patients being exposed to clinicians using thoracic ultrasound.

Endothelial Glycocalyx Degradation Is Associated With Early Organ Impairment in Multiple Trauma Patients

“…The increase of EVLW is the basic pathophysiological change in the early stage of lung injury. studies of isolated animal lungs and isolated human donor lungs indicated that LUSS 27 can accurately re ect the degree of extravascular lung water 28,29 , and more clinical evidence supported the application of lung ultrasound in critical diseases 30 .…”

Lung Ultrasound to Phenotype Chronic Lung Allograft Dysfunction in Lung Transplant Recipients. A Prospective Observational Study

“…B-lines, IS, and pleural thickening are LUS findings known to be associated with presence of fibrosis identified on HRCT [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ]. We hypothesized that presence of these LUS findings in new-onset CLAD could act as surrogate markers of a radiological PPFE pattern verified on HRCT in patients with RAS.…”

“…LUS has primarily been used in the early post-operative phase after LTx in order to diagnose and monitor acute complications such as pleural effusion, pneumonia, and atelectasis [ 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ]. In interstitial lung disease (ILD), lung parenchyma and pleura possess an increased tissue density, which can be demonstrated by LUS findings as a significant number of B-line reverberation artifacts as part of the interstitial syndrome (IS), and pleural thickening [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ].…”

Prehospital emergency medical technicians can perform ultrasonography and blood analysis in prehospital evaluation of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a feasibility study

“…The lessons were constructed as didactic lectures covering basic ultrasound scanning technics, normal ultrasound anatomy, imaging interpretation of both normal and pathologic lung (i.e. sonographic signs, including 'lung sliding', 'B-lines', 'the lung point sign, pleura effusion, and consolidation) [15,20]. Following the didactic lectures, practical physiciansupervised ultrasound sessions were held in which the participants scanned each other.…”