Andrew W. Kirkpatrick

Advanced Ultrasonic Diagnosis of Extremity Trauma: The FASTER Examination

BACKGROUND Ultrasound is of proven accuracy in abdominal and thoracic trauma and may be useful for diagnosing extremity injury in situations where radiography is not available such as military and space applications. We prospectively evaluated the utility of extremity ultrasound performed by trained, nonphysician personnel in patients with extremity trauma to simulate remote aerospace or military applications. METHODS Patients with extremity trauma were identified by history, physical examination, and radiographic studies. Ultrasound examination was performed bilaterally by nonphysician personnel, blinded to radiographic results, with a portable ultrasound device using a 10- to 5-MHz linear probe. Images were videorecorded for later analysis against radiography by Fishers exact test. RESULTS There were 158 examinations performed in 95 patients. The average time of examination was 4 minutes. Ultrasound accurately diagnosed extremity injury in 94% of patients with no false-positive examinations; accuracy was greater in midshaft locations and least in the metacarpal/metatarsals. Soft tissue/tendon injury was readily visualized. CONCLUSION Extremity ultrasound can be performed quickly and accurately by nonphysician personnel with excellent accuracy. Pulmonary ultrasound appears promising; blinded verification of the utility of ultrasound in patients with extremity injury should be performed to determine whether extremity and respiratory evaluation should be added to the FAST examination (the FASTER examination) and to verify the technique in remote locations such as military and aerospace applications.

Sonographic Diagnosis of a Pneumothorax Inapparent on Plain Radiography: Confirmation by Computed Tomography

The focused assessment with sonography for trauma (FAST) consists of imaging the perihepatic, pelvic, perisplenic, and pericardial locations for the presence of free fluid.1,2 Although the pleural spaces may similarly be sonographically evaluated for pleural fluid using sonography,3 the FAST examination has not routinely been used to exclude pneumothorax. Traumatic pneumothorax is a frequent cause of preventable trauma death. Pneumothoraces are usually detected through clinical examination supplemented with plain chest radiographs. Most radiographs initially obtainable in severe blunt trauma settings are anteroposterior (AP) supine films because of concerns regarding spinal injury. In the supine patient, a pneumothorax is usually suggested by the presence of a deep sulcus sign, or the crisp definition of the pericardial silhouette.4 We describe the diagnosis of a small pneumothorax by thoracic ultrasound with computed tomographic (CT) confirmation in a patient after blunt trauma who had a nondiagnostic chest radiograph.

Identifying patients at risk for intracranial and extracranial blunt carotid injuries

BACKGROUND Blunt carotid injuries are rare, often occult, and potentially devastating. Angiographic screening programs have detected this injury in up to 1% of blunt trauma patients. Implementing a liberal angiographic screening program at our hospital is impractical and we want to identify a high-risk group to target for screening. We hypothesize that intracranial and extracranial carotid injuries have different risks, presentations, and outcomes. METHODS Patients with intracranial and extracranial carotid injuries were identified from the British Columbia trauma registry. Presentation and outcome were reviewed. To facilitate statistical modeling the analysis was done by matching cases to 5 randomly selected controls. Risk factors for injury were evaluated by univariate and multiple logistic regression. RESULTS A total of 35 carotid injuries were identified. Thirteen intracranial injuries were identified in 10 patients. Twenty-two extracranial injuries were identified in 18 patients. Sixty-seven percent of patients with intracranial injuries and 31% of those with extracranial injuries died (P = 0.11). Eleven percent of intracranial injuries and 56% of extracranial injuries were occult (P = 0.04). Glasgow outcome scores were 2.04 intracranial and 3.12 extracranial (P = 0.18). For intracranial injuries the multiple variable predictive model had two predictors: Glasgow Coma Score </=8 and facial fractures. For extracranial the predictors were GCS < or =8 and thoracic injury (Abbreviated Injury Score > or =3). CONCLUSIONS Intracranial injuries were frequently detected on initial investigations and have very poor outcomes. Extracranial injuries were more frequently occult and stand to benefit from early detection by screening programs. As independent risk factors for these two injuries differ, limited screening resources should focus on risk factors for occult extracranial injury: namely, low GCS and significant thoracic injury.

Utilization of ultrasound for the detection of pneumothorax in the neonatal special-care nursery

Pneumothorax is a potentially life-threatening condition in the setting of the neonatal special-care nursery (SCN) that may result in rapid deterioration and death. The familiar appearances associated with pneumothorax on AP supine chest radiograph are highly specific, but limited in sensitivity. In this case report, we describe the theory and technique of thoracic ultrasound for detection of pneumothorax in the SCN, providing a viable alternative to the cross-table lateral radiograph without ionising radiation, with highly accurate results, and with minimal patient positioning.

Correlation between physiological assessment and outcome after liver transplantation

BACKGROUND Critical shortages of organ donors for transplantation require appropriate utilization of this scarce resource. The purpose of this study was to assess whether use of physiological parameters of preliver transplant recipients is helpful in determining eventual outcome. METHODS Between October 1989 and June 1999, 215 liver transplants were performed on 199 patients at the Vancouver Hospital nad Health Sciences Centre. Thirty-one patients undergoing transplantation between May 1993 and June 1994 were retrospectively evaluated to obtain a minimum 5-year follow-up. Variables examined included pretransplant activation status (status 1, at home; status 2, hospitalized; status 3, admitted to intensive care; status 4, mechanical ventilation), simplified acute physiological score (SAPS), Acute Physiology, Age, and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II, and APACHE III scores at the time of transplantation. The scores were correlated to posttransplant mortality and functional outcome. RESULTS The 5-year mortality for status 1 patients was 14.3% versus 30% for patients listed as status 2 or greater (P = not significant). There were no significant differences in any of the physiological scoring assessments with regard to posttransplant mortality or functional assessment. Of the surviving patients, 18 of 22 who were employed, in school, or active at home pretransplant returned to their pretransplant activity. CONCLUSIONS Detailed physiological scoring systems are no more accurate in predicting outcome after liver transplant than current listing status parameters.