Patient with acute cholecystitis. Note here the stones layering in the dependent portion of the gallbladder (red arrows) with the posterior dark shadowing dark shadowing (blue arrows)
With gallbladder dissension (>4cm) in the transverse orientation.
And gallbladder wall thickening (>3mm)
And even a small amount of pericholecystic fluid.
Take home points: 1. Don't forget to consider the gallbladder in patients with epig pain and non-specific labs. 2. Cholecystitis is a clinical dx with sono findings (stones + wall thick, biliary dissension, PCF, sono-murphy sign).
Take home points 2/2: 3. If pt condition changes or doesn't improve - don't be afraid to re-image - perhaps a different way.
Today's #POCUS lecture by @mtabbut about the FAST exam in Hemodynamically Pediatric Blunt Abdominal Trauma. #MetroEUS
Aggregate sensitivity of FAST for all intra-abdominal injuries is low. Specificity is high. Remember though, the FAST was designed to look for FF, not all injuries. So if the injury is not associated with FF, the FAST will likely not see it.
So what can we do to increase the sensitivity of the FAST? Serial exams and adjunctive labs.
Nerve blocks allow for the management of acute pain or painful procedures in the ED. Decreases need for opiates and sedations. Ultrasound guided vs blind decreases inadvertent vascular or nerve injection and allows targeted depot of anesthetic agent around the nerve.
Multiple studies demonstrate the efficacy of ultrasound guidance over landmark guidance.