Kameda and Taniguchi Journal of Intensive Care (2016) 4:53

DOI 10.1186/s40560-016-0175-y

REVIEW Open Access

Overview of point-of-care abdominal

ultrasound in emergency and critical care
Toru Kameda1* and Nobuyuki Taniguchi2

Abstract
Point-of-care abdominal ultrasound (US), which is performed by clinicians at bedside, is increasingly being used to
evaluate clinical manifestations, to facilitate accurate diagnoses, and to assist procedures in emergency and critical
care. Methods for the assessment of acute abdominal pain with point-of-care US must be developed according to
accumulated evidence in each abdominal region. To detect hemoperitoneum, the methodology of a focused
assessment with sonography for a trauma examination may also be an option in non-trauma patients. For the
assessment of systemic hypoperfusion and renal dysfunction, point-of-care renal Doppler US may be an option.
Utilization of point-of-care US is also considered in order to detect abdominal and pelvic lesions. It is particularly
useful for the detection of gallstones and the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis. Point-of-case US is justified as the
initial imaging modality for the diagnosis of ureterolithiasis and the assessment of pyelonephritis. It can be used
with great accuracy to detect the presence of abdominal aortic aneurysm in symptomatic patients. It may also be
useful for the diagnoses of digestive tract diseases such as appendicitis, small bowel obstruction, and
gastrointestinal perforation. Additionally, point-of-care US can be a modality for assisting procedures.
Paracentesis under US guidance has been shown to improve patient care. US appears to be a potential
modality to verify the placement of the gastric tube. The estimation of the amount of urine with bladder US can lead
to an increased success rate in small children. US-guided catheterization with transrectal pressure appears to be useful
in some male patients in whom standard urethral catheterization is difficult. Although a greater accumulation of
evidences is needed in some fields, point-of-care abdominal US is a promising modality to improve patient care in
emergency and critical care settings.
Keywords: Point-of-care ultrasound, Abdominal ultrasound, Emergency, Critical care, Review

Background US performed by clinicians in emergency and critical

Due to the portability and accessibility of ultrasound care settings.
(US), point-of-care US, which is performed by clinicians
at the bedside, is increasingly being used to facilitate
accurate diagnoses, to monitor the fluid status, and to Review
guide procedures in emergency and critical care [1]. The Clinical manifestations and point-of-care US
main applications in abdominal regions include trauma, Acute abdominal pain
biliary, urinary tract, intrauterine pregnancy, and ab- As a single imaging strategy, computed tomography
dominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), which can be evaluated (CT) is overall superior to US in patients with acute ab-
by a transabdominal approach [2, 3]. Additionally, new dominal pain [4]. Laméris et al. reported that conditional
applications with point-of-care abdominal US have also strategy with CT after negative or inconclusive radiology
been assessed and recently proposed. This article pro- US resulted in the highest overall sensitivity, with only
vides an up-to-date overview of point-of-care abdominal 6 % missed urgent conditions, and the lowest overall ex-
posure to radiation by performing CT in only half of
adult patients with acute abdominal pain [4]. In this re-
* Correspondence: [email protected]
1
Department of Emergency Medicine, Red Cross Society Azumino Hospital,
gard, imaging strategies including point-of-care abdom-
5685 Toyoshina, Azumino, Nagano 399-8292, Japan inal US must also be evaluated.
Full list of author information is available at the end of the article

© 2016 The Author(s). Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
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(http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.
Kameda and Taniguchi Journal of Intensive Care (2016) 4:53 Page 2 of 9

A pilot observational study showed that emergency initial evaluation; therefore, spontaneous hemoperito-
physician (EP)-performed US appears to positively im- neum should be detected rapidly during the evaluation.
pact decision-making and the diagnostic workup of pa- Case reports comment on the use of bedside US to de-
tients with nonspecific abdominal pain as determined by tect intra-abdominal free fluid to aid in the diagnosis of
the nursing triage. In 128 patients, 58 (45 %; 95 % confi- the causes; however, few original studies have explored
dence interval (CI), 36–54 %) had an improvement in its use [11].
diagnostic accuracy and planned diagnostic workup Hemoperitoneum caused by gynecologic conditions,
using US [5]. In a randomized study including 800 adult such as rupture of the gestational sac in ectopic preg-
patients with acute abdominal pain, Lindelius et al. re- nancy and hemorrhage or rupture of an ovarian cyst, is
ported the utility of US performed by surgeons who common in women of childbearing age, in whom US is
underwent a 4-week US training program. The propor- selected as the primary imaging modality [10]. In a
tion of correct primary diagnoses was 7.9 % higher in retrospective study, Rodgerson et al. demonstrated that
the group undergoing surgeon-performed US than in identifying patients with a suspected ectopic pregnancy
the control group (64.7 vs 56.8 %; p = 0.027) [6]. The and fluid in Morison’s pouch by EP-performed abdom-
number of US performed in the radiology department inal US decreased the time to diagnosis and treatment
was significantly lower in the group receiving surgeon- [12]. In a prospective observational study, Moore et al.
performed US, while there was no difference between reported that ten of 242 patients with suspected ectopic
the groups regarding the number of ordered CT scans or pregnancy were found to have fluid in Morison’s pouch
other examinations [7]. with EP-performed abdominal US, and nine of the ten
Evidence on detection of each lesion causing acute ab- patients underwent immediate operative intervention for
dominal pain with point-of-care abdominal US is ruptured ectopic pregnancy. They concluded that free
reviewed in the “Detection of abdominal and pelvic le- intraperitoneal fluid in Morison’s pouch in patients with
sions” section. Methods for the assessment of acute ab- suspected ectopic pregnancy may be rapidly identified
dominal pain with point-of-care US must be developed by US and predicts the need for intervention [13].
according to the accumulated evidence in each abdom- However, US is not sensitive at identifying a focus of
inal region. extravasation from a vessel or organ [8]. Therefore,
FAST may be an option for the initial evaluation to de-
Hemoperitoneum tect hemoperitoneum in non-trauma patients (Fig. 1).
Abdominal US in trauma patients is typically performed
with the methodology of a focused assessment with son- Hypoperfusion and renal dysfunction
ography for trauma (FAST) examination. FAST provides Doppler US is indicated as a tool to assess renal perfu-
a quick overview of the peritoneal cavity to detect free sion. The Doppler-based resistive index (RI) is calculated
fluid, which is a direct sign of hemoperitoneum and an using the following formula: (peak systolic velocity −
indirect sign of organ injuries. The sensitivity and speci- end-diastolic velocity)/peak systolic velocity in an inter-
ficity of FAST for the detection of free intraperitoneal lobar or arcuate artery, with a normal value of 0.58 ±
fluid were 64–98 and 86–100 %, respectively. These ran- 0.10. It is broadly accepted that values >0.70 are consid-
ging results may be explained by differences in the levels ered to be abnormal [14]. Corradi et al. reported that in
of clinical experience and in the reference standards [8]. normotensive polytrauma patients without biochemical
The sensitivity may be higher, and time needed to per- signs of hypoperfusion, a renal Doppler RI greater than
form may be shorter in patients with hemodynamic col- 0.7 at admittance into the emergency department was
lapse. Wherrett et al. demonstrated that an abdominal predictive of hemorrhagic shock within the first 24 h
assessment with FAST required 19 ± 5 s in the positive (odds ratio, 57.8; 95 % CI, 10.5–317.0; p < 0.001). How-
group and 154 ± 13 s in the negative group (p < 0.001) ever, the inferior vena cava (IVC) diameter and caval
with high accuracy in 69 hypotensive blunt trauma pa- index were not predictive in these patients. They hy-
tients [9]. pothesized that most of the patients were normovolemic
It is also reasonable to consider the usage of a at arrival [15]. Although larger comparative studies are
complete or partial FAST examination in evaluating needed, a high renal Doppler RI may be more predictive
spontaneous hemoperitoneum in non-trauma patients. of hemorrhagic shock than the IVC diameter and caval
The etiology of spontaneous hemoperitoneum can vary, index [15].
and the causes may be classified as gynecologic, hepatic, A renal Doppler RI may also help in detecting early
splenic, vascular, or coagulopathic conditions [10]. Spon- renal dysfunction or predicting short-term reversibility of
taneous hemoperitoneum frequently presents with acute acute kidney injury (AKI) in critically ill patients [16–18].
abdominal pain with or without hemodynamic collapse. A preliminary study showed that a semi-quantitative as-
In some patients, the collapse becomes obvious after the sessment of renal perfusion using color Doppler was
Kameda and Taniguchi Journal of Intensive Care (2016) 4:53 Page 3 of 9

Fig. 1 Ultrasound images in a 47-year-old man who presented with left upper continuous abdominal pain. The patient began to feel pain after
heavy physical labor without awareness of a traumatic event. Bedside ultrasound after history taking and a physical examination revealed free
fluid in Morison’s pouch (a, arrow), perisplenic space (b, arrow), and rectovesical pouch. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography showed
hemoperitoneum and splenomegaly with a low-density, striped area in the lower pole. He was diagnosed as having splenic rupture and
treated conservatively

easier to perform than the RI and may provide similar in- positive predictive value of 44 % (95 % CI, 29–59 %),
formation [16]. That study also found that both the semi- and negative predictive value of 97 % (95 % CI, 93–
quantitative assessment using color Doppler and the RI 99 %). Additionally, the test characteristics of EP-
could be performed with good feasibility and reliability by performed US were similar to those of radiology US. Ac-
inexperienced operators, such as intensive care residents cording to the high negative predictive value, the study
following a half-day training session [16]. Doppler US may indicated that patients with a negative result are unlikely
be useful in assessing renal perfusion; however, larger to require cholecystectomy or admission within 2 weeks
studies with standardized methods are needed to confirm of their initial presentation [23].
these results and reveal its roles in the management of pa-
tients with AKI [19]. Appendicitis
CT was found to have a superior test performance to US
Detection of abdominal and pelvic lesions in the diagnosis of acute appendicitis; however, US is
Gallstone and acute cholecystitis recommended as the first-line imaging modality in
It is well known that radiology US is very useful for the young, female, and slender patients in view of the radi-
detection of gallstones and the diagnosis of acute chole- ation exposure [24]. Recent studies from the field of
cystitis [20]. A systematic review and meta-analysis was emergency medicine addressed the diagnostic perform-
conducted to compare surgeon-performed US for sus- ance of point-of-care US performed by EPs or pediatric
pected gallstone disease to radiology US or a patho- EPs in the evaluation of suspected appendicitis [25–30]
logical examination as the gold standard investigation. (Table 1). In these studies, no visualization of the appen-
The search criteria resulted in eight studies with 1019 dix with US was coded as a negative result, and the final
patients. The pooled sensitivity was 96 % (95 % CI, diagnosis of appendicitis was made with operative or
93.4–97.9 %), and the specificity was 99 % (95 % CI, pathology findings. Chen et al. demonstrated a high sen-
98.3–99.8 %) [21]. On the other hand, EP interpretation sitivity in their study, where more extensive US training
for the identification of gallstones is reported to have a was provided and the prevalence of appendicitis was
sensitivity of 86–96 % and specificity of 78–98 % [22]. higher [25]. Several studies demonstrated the feasibility
Gallstones are found in approximately 95 % of patients of reducing the length of stay in the emergency depart-
with acute cholecystitis; however, the detection of gall- ment [28] and avoiding CT according to the result of a
stones is not specific for the diagnosis of acute chole- high positive predictive value in some patients [30] when
cystitis. When performing US, secondary findings such using point-of-care US as the first-line imaging modality.
as gallbladder wall thickening, pericholecystic fluid, and To date, the diagnosis of appendicitis with point-of-
sonographic Murphy sign provide more specific infor- care US by clinicians has not been fully accepted. A
mation [20]. Summers et al. reported in a prospective large prospective study is necessary to investigate
observational study with 164 enrolled patients that the methods to increase the accuracy of point-of-care US
test characteristics of EP-performed US for the detection through more effective educational techniques and
of acute cholecystitis had a sensitivity of 87 % (95 % CI, safety of the addition to sequential radiology imaging
66–97 %), specificity of 82 % (95 % CI, 74–88 %), [28, 30].
Kameda and Taniguchi Journal of Intensive Care (2016) 4:53 Page 4 of 9

Table 1 Diagnostic performance of ultrasound performed by emergency physicians in the evaluation of suspected acute
appendicitis
Author Sample size Prevalence (%) Sensitivity (%) Specificity (%) PPV (%) NPV (%)
Chen et al. [25] 147 75 96 68 90 86
Fox et al. [26] 155 45 39 90 75 65
Fox et al. [27] 126 45 65 90 84 76
Elikashvili et al. [28] 150 33 60 94 86 82
Sivitz et al. [29] 264 32 85 93 85 93
Mallin et al. [30] 97 35 68 98 96 85
Four studies [25, 27–30] were performed prospectively. The final diagnosis of appendicitis was made according to operative or pathology findings
PPV positive predictive value, NPV negative predictive value

Small bowel obstruction Ureterolithiasis and pyelonephritis

The utility of surgeon-performed US for the diagnosis of Pain due to ureterolithiasis is a common problem in the
bowel obstruction and early recognition of strangulation emergency room. CT has become the most common ini-
was evaluated in the 1990s [31]. In recent years, some tial imaging modality for suspected ureterolithiasis be-
studies showed the accuracy of EP-performed US for the cause of its high accuracy [38]. However, CT exposes
diagnosis of small bowel obstruction. Unlüer et al. dem- patients to ionizing radiation, which is especially con-
onstrated in a prospective study with 168 patients that cerning for patients with ureterolithiasis as they are
the sensitivity and specificity were 97.7 % (95 % CI, prone to recurrence and repeated imaging. Moreover, no
94.5–100 %) and 92.7 % (95 % CI, 87.0–98.3 %), respect- evidence has shown that increased CT use is associated
ively. Additionally, the diagnostic accuracy of EP- with an improved patient outcome [38]. The diagnostic
performed and radiology-performed US were not statis- performance of bedside US performed by EPs or medical
tically different from one another [32]. Jang et al. dem- staff members in the diagnosis of ureterolithiasis has
onstrated in a prospective study with 76 patients that been prospectively studied, as shown in Table 2 [39–42].
the sensitivity and specificity were 90.9 % (95 % CI, These studies, which used CT as the reference standard,
74.5–97.6 %) and 83.7 % (95 % CI, 68.7–92.7 %), respect- showed that the diagnostic performance using US find-
ively [33]. These studies also showed that EP-performed ing of hydronephrosis was generally modest. In one of
US had a superior test performance compared with the articles, Herbst et al. also demonstrated that attend-
an X-ray in the diagnosis of small bowel obstruction ing physicians with fellowship training had significantly
[32, 33]. However, large prospective studies are
needed to alter the management of small bowel ob-
struction with its use.

Gastrointestinal perforation
The diagnosis of gastrointestinal perforation is based
on the evidence of pneumoperitoneum, which is usu-
ally detected with an X-ray or CT. A US sign of
pneumoperitoneum (Fig. 2) has also been recognized
following a comprehensive study on visualizing pneu-
moperitoneum with US reported from Germany over
30 years ago [34]. In the 21st century, the utility of
clinician-performed US for the detection of pneumo-
peritoneum was reported from Asian countries. Pro-
spective studies have demonstrated the sensitivity and Fig. 2 An ultrasound image in a 43-year-old man who presented
with sudden onset of abdominal pain. The patient had a history of a
specificity to be 85–93 % and 53–100 %, respectively
duodenal ulcer and was aware of black stool prior to the presentation.
[35–37]. Moreover, Chan et al. also reported that US On physical examination, he had diffuse abdominal tenderness with
was more sensitive than an X-ray for the detection guarding. Bedside ultrasound was performed with the patient in the
[36]. However, large prospective trials are needed to left lateral decubitus position. Reverberation artifacts on the ventral
validate the accuracy of this modality and whether surface of the liver (arrows) indicated intraperitoneal free air. The
artifacts were distinguished from other artifacts with respiratory
the concept can be generalized among clinician
movement (arrowheads), which originated at the lung surface
sonographers.
Kameda and Taniguchi Journal of Intensive Care (2016) 4:53 Page 5 of 9

Table 2 Diagnostic performance of ultrasound performed by emergency clinicians in the evaluation of suspected ureterolithiasis
Author Sample size Prevalence (%) Sensitivity (%) Specificity (%) PPV (%) NPV (%)
Gaspari et al. [39] 104 51 87 82 84 86
Watkins et al. [40] 57 68 80 83 91 65
Moak et al. [41] 107 36 76 78 66 86
Herbst et al. [42] 670 47 73 73 71 75
PPV positive predictive value, NPV negative predictive value

better sensitivity than all other users (93 vs 68 %) [42]. A Adnexa and uterus
large, multicenter, randomized trial conducted in the It has been generally accepted that transvaginal US is su-
USA showed that initial US performed by EPs was asso- perior to transabdominal US for evaluating adnexa and
ciated with lower cumulative radiation exposure than uterus, and transvaginal US is generally selected as the
initial CT, without significant differences in high-risk initial technique among gynecological imaging modal-
diagnoses with complications, serious adverse events, ities [45]. In some institutions and countries, EPs per-
pain scores, return emergency department visits, or hos- form transvaginal US in daily practice; however, EP-
pitalizations [38]. Although US was less sensitive than performed transvaginal US is not common globally.
CT for the diagnosis of ureterolithiasis, bedside US in They may have the opportunity to perform transabdom-
emergency departments is justified as the initial imaging inal US in women who may have genital problems [45].
modality. Moreover, whether the detection of the stone A systematic review and meta-analysis showed that
itself in addition to hydronephrosis with point-of-care the use of bedside transabdominal US and/or transvagi-
US actually improves the accuracy of the diagnosis re- nal US performed by EPs consistently exhibits excellent
quires further investigation [43]. test characteristics for ruling out ectopic pregnancy. In
Acute pyelonephritis is also a common disease en- this investigation, the positive and negative results were
countered in emergency departments. For complicated defined as the absence of a definite intrauterine preg-
acute pyelonephritis, such as obstructive uropathy due nancy and a visible intrauterine pregnancy, respectively.
to ureterolithiasis, delayed management can lead to Ten studies were included with a total of 2057 patients,
high morbidity and mortality. Chen et al. showed that of whom 152 (7.5 %) had an ectopic pregnancy. The
EP-performed US was able to detect significant ab- pooled sensitivity and negative predictive value were re-
normalities such as hydronephrosis, polycystic kidney ported to be 99.3 % (95 % CI, 96.6 to 100 %) and
disease, renal abscess, and emphysematous pyeloneph- 99.96 % (95 % CI, 99.6 to 100 %), respectively [46].
ritis in 40 % of patients finally diagnosed with acute As mentioned previously, point-of-care transabdom-
pyelonephritis. The early utilization of US in emer- inal US is useful to detect hemoperitoneum due to gyne-
gency departments may impact on the management cologic diseases. Moreover, it is reasonable to investigate
of these patients or initial assessment of septic pa- its efficacy to detect genital lesions themselves, because
tients [44] (Fig. 3). the use of point-of-care transabdominal US as an

Fig. 3 Ultrasound images in an 88-year-old man who presented with shaking chills. The patient had a history of acute cholecystitis with percutaneous
transhepatic gallbladder drainage. On physical examination, he had no abdominal or costovertebral angel tenderness. Bedside ultrasound showed a
normal gallbladder (a, arrow) and pelvic dilatation in the right kidney (b, arrowheads). A subsequent computed tomography scan revealed the stone at
the right ureterovesical junction. A complicated urinary tract infection was strongly suspected, and emergent urological consultation was ordered. He
fell into shock soon after the initial evaluation
Kameda and Taniguchi Journal of Intensive Care (2016) 4:53 Page 6 of 9

extension of the physical examination is rapidly growing a potential modality to verify the placement of the gas-
with widespread application [45]. tric tube. The methods include confirmation of the tube
in the stomach [52], the stomach or duodenum with or
AAA without instillation of normal saline mixed with air [53],
The use of US performed by EPs to diagnose AAA has and the cervical esophagus and stomach with or without
been well studied prospectively since the 2000s. A sys- instillation of air [54] or normal saline with air [55]. The
tematic review and meta-analysis published in 2013 visualization can be affected by the size of the tube [52]
showed that the search criteria resulted in seven studies and volume of gas in the gastrointestinal tract [55]. If
with 655 patients, and the pooled operating characteris- the presence of the tip of the tube in the stomach is veri-
tics of EP-performed US for the detection of AAA had a fied with direct visualization or an indirect finding of dy-
sensitivity of 99 % (95 % CI, 96–100 %) and specificity of namic fogging made by the instillation, US in addition to
98 % (95 % CI, 97–99 %) [47]. Bedside US can be used physical examinations appears to be a substitute imaging
with great accuracy to detect AAA in symptomatic pa- modality for a chest X-ray in some patients.
tients; therefore, it is justified as the initial imaging mo-
dality to rapidly detect AAA in emergency departments. Urethral catheterization
Urethral catheterization is frequently performed for a
Usages assisting procedures urinalysis and culture, management of acute urinary re-
Paracentesis tention, and monitoring of the urine output in emer-
US guidance enables visualization of the needle insertion gency and critical care settings.
site to perform paracentesis safely. An observational co- If there is little certainty of the presence or amount
hort study using a nationally representative database was of urine in the bladder before urethral catheterization,
conducted to examine the effect of US guidance on the then this procedure to obtain urine for an analysis
risk of bleeding complications after paracentesis. Of and culture often needs to be repeated. The estima-
69,859 patients undergoing paracentesis, 0.8 % (n = 565) tion of the amount of urine using bedside bladder US
experienced bleeding complications. After adjusting for has been reported to lead to an increased success rate
the inpatient or outpatient procedures, the duration of during the first attempt in children younger than
hospitalization before the paracentesis, and the admis- 2 years of age [56, 57].
sion diagnoses, US guidance reduced the risk of bleeding In adult male patients, difficulty with standard
complications by 68 % (odds ratio, 0.32; 95 % CI, 0.25– catheterization is occasionally encountered. In such
0.41). The data indicated that US guidance is associated cases, repeated and unsuccessful blind attempts can
with a decreased risk of complications after paracentesis cause patient distress and damage to the urethra, usually
[48]. A randomized study with 100 enrolled patients requiring a urological consultation. Kameda et al. men-
demonstrated that the success rate of US-assisted para- tioned in their pilot study that transabdominal US per-
centesis performed by EPs with varying levels of experi- formed by emergency medical personnel can reveal the
ence and the traditional technique were 95 and 65 %, tip of the catheter in a part of the posterior and bulbar
respectively (p = 0.0003) [49]. Case series indicated that urethra, and US-guided catheterization with transrectal
emergent US-guided paracentesis may lead to a signifi- pressure appears to be safe and useful in some male pa-
cant management change in selected unstable patients tients in whom standard urethral catheterization is diffi-
with a positive FAST examination [50]. As mentioned cult [58] (Fig. 4).
above, paracentesis under US guidance is shown to im-
prove patient care. Furthermore, localization of the in- Conclusions
ferior epigastric artery before paracentesis may provide a Methods for the assessment of acute abdominal pain
more reliable means to avoid complications [51]. with point-of-care abdominal US must be developed ac-
cording to the accumulated evidence in each abdominal
Conformation of gastric tube placement region. To detect hemoperitoneum, a FAST examination
Gastric tube insertion is commonly performed in emer- may be a helpful option in non-trauma patients. For the
gency and critical care settings. Immediately after the assessment of systemic hypoperfusion and renal dysfunc-
procedure, the placement of the tube is typically evalu- tion, point-of-care renal Doppler US may be an option.
ated using a visual inspection of aspirate contents and The utilization of point-of-care US is also considered in
auscultation with instillation of air in the tube. Addition- order to detect abdominal and pelvic lesions. It is useful
ally, a chest X-ray is recommended in most cases to con- for the detection of gallstones and the diagnosis of acute
firm correct placement. However, a chest X-ray has cholecystitis. It is justified as the initial imaging modality
issues, including radiation exposure, delayed confirm- for the diagnosis of ureterolithiasis and the assessment
ation, and cost. Several recent studies showed that US is of pyelonephritis. It can be used with great accuracy to
Kameda and Taniguchi Journal of Intensive Care (2016) 4:53 Page 7 of 9

Fig. 4 Ultrasound images in a 78-year-old man who presented with difficult urination. The patient had a history of benign prostatic
hypertrophy. Standard urethral catheterization attempted by an experienced emergency nurse and an experienced emergency physician
failed due to complicated urethral bleeding. a Bedside ultrasound revealed the tip of the catheter in a part of the posterior and bulbar
urethra (arrows) while the progress was obstructed. Judging from the location of the internal urethral orifice, a part of the urethra was
thus determined to be bent. The circle denotes the location of the internal urethral orifice. b The bent part of the urethra had become
blunt with transrectal pressure using an inserted index finger (broken arrows). The arrows denote the tip of the catheter, and the circle
denotes the location of the internal urethral orifice. c Ultrasound-guided catheterization with transrectal pressure without forceful
manipulation was successful on the first attempt. Arrowheads denote the inflated balloon

detect the presence of AAA in symptomatic patients. It Authors’ contributions

may also be useful for the diagnoses of digestive tract dis- TK wrote the manuscript and revised the manuscript. NT revised the
manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
eases. Additionally, point-of-care US can be a modality for
assisting procedures. Paracentesis under US guidance is Competing interests
shown to improve patient care. US appears to be a poten- The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
tial modality to verify the placement of a gastric tube.
Moreover, the estimation of the amount of urine with Consent for publication
Written informed consents were obtained from all the patients for
bladder US can lead to an increased success rate in small publication of this review and accompanying images.
children. US-guided catheterization with transrectal pres-
sure appears to be useful in some male patients in whom Ethics approval and consent to participate
standard urethral catheterization is difficult. Although a Not applicable.
greater accumulation of evidence is needed in some fields,
Author details
point-of-care abdominal US is a promising modality to 1
Department of Emergency Medicine, Red Cross Society Azumino Hospital,
improve patient care in emergency and critical care 5685 Toyoshina, Azumino, Nagano 399-8292, Japan. 2Department of Clinical
settings. Laboratory Medicine, Jichi Medical University, 3311-1, Yakushiji, Shimotsuke,
Tochigi 329-0498, Japan.
Abbreviations
AAA, abdominal aortic aneurysm; AKI, acute kidney injury; CI, confidence Received: 21 February 2016 Accepted: 12 July 2016
interval; CT, computed tomography; EP, emergency physician; FAST, focused
assessment with sonography for trauma; IVC, inferior vena cava; RI, resistive
index; US, ultrasound References
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