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Cardiac point-of-care ultrasound in the paediatric cardiac ICU: assessment of imaging quality and interpretation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 May 2025

Hunter C. Wilson Open the ORCID record for Hunter C. Wilson [Opens in a new window] ,
Kevin Maher ,
Ritu Sachdeva  and
Marcos Mills Open the ORCID record for Marcos Mills [Opens in a new window]
Hunter C. Wilson
Affiliation:
Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
Kevin Maher
Affiliation:
Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
Ritu Sachdeva
Affiliation:
Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
Marcos Mills*
Affiliation:
Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
*
Corresponding author: Marcos Mills; Email: millsm@kidsheart.com
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Abstract

We evaluated quality characteristics of cardiac point-of-care ultrasound performed in our paediatric cardiac ICU. Of 47 included patients, diagnostic imaging was feasible in a high percentage of patients with good image quality. Intensivist interpretations of images were highly specific for dichotomised abnormal findings when compared to interpretation from a cardiologist with expertise in imaging but challenges in accurately assessing depressed ventricular function and the risk of discrepant interpretations exist even amongst frequent users with extensive training and experience. These findings may serve as a template for continued development of cardiac point-of-care ultrasound in a high-impact clinical environment.

Keywords

Point-of-care ultrasoundfocused cardiac ultrasoundpaediatric cardiac ICUpaediatric cardiologyCHD

Information

Type
Brief Report
Information
Cardiology in the Young , Volume 35 , Issue 6 , June 2025 , pp. 1256 - 1258
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press

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