The other day I saw a 40 year old female with abdominal pain. She is certain that she is not pregnant.
I did a bedside POCUS which showed free fluid in abdominal cavity
It turned out to be a ruptured ectopic pregnancy!!! I was shocked 😲
What is the most challenging case you diagnosed with POCUS?
Great paper. Following are the take home message:
POCUS-guided resuscitation probably reduces 28-day mortality in shock patients (RR 0.88; 95% CI, 0.78-0.99).
It shortens vasoactive medication duration by about 0.73 days (95% CI, -1.16 to -0.30).
Need for renal replacement therapy likely decreases (RR 0.80; 95% CI, 0.63-1.02), with low-moderate certainty.
Lactate clearance improves (high certainty evidence), aiding hemodynamic stability.
Evidence gaps remain on optimal POCUS timing, frequency, and operator competency thresholds.
These are some High-Yield Uses of point of care ultrasound:
✔️ Shock → RUSH protocol ✔️ Dyspnea → B-lines vs pneumothorax vs effusion ✔️ Cardiac arrest → Reversible causes ✔️ Procedural guidance → Safer, faster, cleaner ✔️ LVOT VTI → Fluid responsiveness
What are your thoughts?
Do you think there are any other uses of the point of care ultrasound in your department?
Last week I saw a 56 yr old man with chest pain. Bedside echo showed a large pericardial effusion with sonographic features of cardiac tamponade
I'll post the clip here when I can