Pregnant Manatee Returned to the Wild

Foetal Ultrasound of Pregnant SeaWorld Manatee

When you think of manatee migration, you don’t normally picture aircraft.But that is how Washburn the pregnant manatee was transported from Massachusetts, where she was rescued (just off the coast) to Sea World in Orlando, Florida, where she spent 2 weeks recuperating.After recovering from cold-related stress, Washburn was found fit to be released back into the waters off the coast of Florida.See some clips from Washburn’s foetal ultrasound (with a Sonosite Edge II) below!Watch SeaWorld’s rehabilitation of Washburn and her release
Dr. Sonia Szlyk, an anesthesiologist and director of regional anesthesia for North American Partners in  Anesthesia's Mid-Atlantic division, explains how local anesthesia (aided by ultrasound guidance) is  helping control post-operative discomfort wit

Ultrasound Guided Nerve Blocks, Not Opioids, for Post-Operative Pain Management

It’s no secret that the U.S. is in the throes of a major heroin epidemic, at least partly caused by the over-prescription of opioid painkillers by well-meaning physicians. When it comes to perioperative pain control, there are new ways to tackle patient discomfort without resorting to prescription opioids.Dr. Sonia Szlyk, an anaesthesiologist and director of regional anaesthesia for North American Partners in Anaesthesia's Mid-Atlantic division, explains how local anaesthesia (aided by ultrasound guidance) is helping control post-operative discomfort without limiting patient mobility. Dr.…
Log into Sonosite Institute today, and begin your ultrasound-guided paravertebral nerve block education with our new learning module

Sonosite Institute: Paravertebral Nerve Block Education Module

Log into Sonosite Institute today, and begin your ultrasound-guided paravertebral nerve block education with our new learning module. This module will show you how to: Describe the indications and contraindications of an ultrasound-guided paravertebral nerve block. Review the gross and sono-anatomy of the thoracic paravertebral space. Explore the common techniques for performing an ultrasound-guided paravertebral nerve block. View the Ultrasound Guided Paravertebral Nerve Blocks webinar by Dr. Theresa Bowling, Director of Regional Anaesthesia, The Stamford Hospital. Here’s a sneak…
Dr. Thomas Grau, Head of Anaesthesia, Surgery, Intensive Care, Emergency Medicine and Pain at the Gütersloh Clinic, first studied ultrasound for a PhD on spinal imaging at Heidelberg University Hospital in the 1990s. 25 years on, he reflects on the role p

User Stories: 25 Years of Point-of-Care Ultrasound in Anaesthesia

Dr. Thomas Grau, Head of Anaesthesia, Surgery, Intensive Care, Emergency Medicine and Pain at the Gütersloh Clinic, first studied ultrasound for a PhD on spinal imaging at Heidelberg University Hospital in the 1990s. 25 years on, he reflects on the role point-of-care ultrasound now plays in anaesthesia. "My first encounters with ultrasound were guided by efforts in Heidelberg to improve epidural anaesthesia in obstetrics. We identified that using point-of-care ultrasound to guide the needles could potentially help doctors to implement more effective epidurals more quickly, and might also…
Anaesthetist Dr Philippe Grillo explains the role of point-of-care ultrasound in ensuring effective nerve blocks and post-operative pain relief.

User Stories: A Clear Path for Ambulatory Care

The Clinique Juge is a Marseille clinic specialising in ambulatory surgery. Combining regional anaesthesia with focused pre- and post-operative care, the clinic aims to allow patients to return home soon after orthopaedic surgery, often on the same day as their procedure. Anaesthetist Dr Philippe Grillo explains the benefits of this approach, and the role of point-of-care ultrasound in ensuring effective nerve blocks and post-operative pain relief."We treat around 15,000 patients a year, and have been using regional anaesthesia for approximately eight years to accelerate post-operative…

Clinical Chest Professionals, Here's Our Guide to CHEST2016

Has it really been a year already? We’re back in LA this week for another edition of CHEST, the premier clinical event for chest medicine in the U.S. We love CHEST because the show connects a global community around not just networking and new technology, but brings together new research, instruction and interactive simulations too. If you’re a veteran of CHEST you probably know your way around the show. If you haven’t been before or need a refresher, here’s our quick “Guide to CHEST2016.” 1. Push Your Medical Education  It can be hard to complete continuing medical education credentials…
If you’re headed to ACEP16, here’s a list of the Top Five Tips and Trends to look for.

Emergency Medicine Professionals: What to Look For at ACEP16

There are a lot of things Las Vegas is known for – gambling, over-the-top entertainment, and world-class dining. Now there’s one more thing to add to that list: ACEP 2016 – the leading event for emergency medicine. In a few days, thousands of emergency medical professionals from around the globe will gather for ACEP16, an immersive experience that goes beyond what typical medical conferences offer. So what makes ACEP16 so important?ACEP16 is the largest Emergency Medicine focused conference in the US that brings together education, networking, policy development, and new medical…
X-Porte

User Stories: Spreading Point-of-Care Ultrasound Hospital-Wide

What departments are the heaviest users of point-of-care ultrasound in an American-based hospital?The answer varies from hospital to hospital, but we usually see Emergency Medicine, Cardiology, Critical Care and Anaesthesiology rounding out the heavyweight users of bedside ultrasound.But what happens when a hospital wants to bring point-of-care ultrasound to different departments with different clinical applications? And what happens when a hospital wants point-of-care ultrasound in every department? With every doctor?If you’re in Germany, that hospital would be the Evangelisches Krankenhaus…
Sonosite ultrasound machines in Puerto Rico

Global Health: Fujifilm Sonosite Machines Assist Puerto Rican Recovery

Dr. Alfredo Tirado is from Florida Hospital in Orlando, and has been leading an emergency response mission in Puerto Rico to help with Hurricane Maria relief. FUJIFILM Sonosite has contributed four M-Turbos to the medical recovery efforts, and Dr. Tirado sent us an update on his work with medical patients on the island. He is being escorted by helicopter to the most at-need regions and in the image below he is using the Sonosite iViz to perform a FAST scan on a patient.  Sonosite-blog-post-puerto-rico.png "Thank you for helping us give…
Dr. Martin Zoremba (PhD)

The Changing Face of Anaesthesia

With constant pressure on healthcare providers to improve the quality and efficiency of care while reducing costs, standardisation of patient management is a logical step towards more streamlined services. Anaesthesia is one area that is beginning to embrace this approach, combining regional nerve blocks with ultrasound guidance to improve both the quality and effectiveness of patient care while minimizing hospital stays.Dr. Martin Zoremba (PhD), Chief Registrar in the anaesthesia Department at Kreisklinikum Siegen, describes the transformation of his department and the benefits that a…
POCUS Profile: Dr. Torsten Müller

POCUS Profile: Dr. Torsten Müller

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is rapidly becoming a crucial tool for emergency medicine in Germany, and it's increasingly common for ambulances and emergency doctor vehicles to be equipped with POCUS systems. Dr. Torsten Müller is the medical head of rescue services for Kassel, Germany, overseeing pre-hospital care functions for a system that currently runs 65 ambulances and a helicopter, as well as six emergency doctors’ cars that have recently been equipped with FUJIFILM Sonosite iViz systems. Dr. Müller also works part-time as an anaesthetist at Klinikum Kassel, one…
Dr. Christophe Aveline recently sat down with Sonosite to discusses the importance of the TUBE approach for anaesthetists who specialize in patient care in surgical and emergency procedures, as well as intensive care.

The Tube Approach to Perioperative Point-of-Care Ultrasound

Anaesthetists working in perioperative medicine have increasingly taken a whole body approach to patient evaluation known as TUBE – Total Ultrasound Body Examination – thanks to the development of point-of-care ultrasound.Dr. Christophe Aveline, Consultant Anaesthetist in critical care and surgery at the Sévigné Private hospital in Rennes, is an advocate of TUBE and works closely on its adoption with the European Society of Regional Anaesthesia (ESRA) and the French Society of Anaesthesia and Resuscitation. Dr. Aveline recently sat down with Sonosite to discusses the importance of the TUBE…
Sonosite - Concerns about POCUS in Australia

Concerns about Point-of-Care Ultrasound in Australia

by Rich Fabian, Chief Operating Officer, FUJIFILM Sonosite A recent article in the Sydney Morning Herald about a push for increased point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) funding caught my eye. I was initially excited that the topic was receiving such prominent placement, but after delving in, I realised that that situation being described was obviously very frustrating for the people involved. The article describes three problems that Australian providers and patients face when it comes to the use of POCUS in Australian Emergency Departments.   Medical Professionals Need POCUS Training…
Dr Matthew Reed

POCUS Profile: Dr. Matthew J. Reed

Point-of-care ultrasound plays an important role in the emergency sector, enabling hospital clinicians and paramedics responding to an urgent call for medical assistance to assess a patient’s condition. Dr Matthew Reed, an Emergency Medicine consultant at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, explains how ultrasound contributes to the management of cardiac arrest:"My interest in ultrasound began over a decade ago when, as a registrar training in Edinburgh, I visited Australia to work at the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney. At that time, we were not using ultrasound in Edinburgh;…
IWISH Blog

Global Health: The IWISH Foundation and Sonosite Ultrasound Machines in Haiti

Audrey E. Stryker, MD, an Ob/Gyn and partner at Women's Ob-Gyn, P.C., has been traveling to underdeveloped countries with Sonosite ultrasound systems since 2004. As a part of the IWISH Foundation (International Women & Infant Sustainable Healthcare), she and her colleagues recently travelled to Haiti to help train the next generation of medical professionals. This is her story."We've been traveling to underdeveloped countries since 2004, hoping to achieve a model that offers a sustainable means for countries to provide health care for their women and children. Haiti…

Case Study: Point-of-Care Ultrasound in Resuscitation Situations

How valuable is the use of point-of-care ultrasound in resuscitation situations? Consider the following case study, provided by Dr. Mark Mensour, ER physician, Assistant Professor at the Northern Ontario (Canada) School of Medicine and course developer for Emergency healthcare practitioners. A 59-year old male, recently admitted for fever and pneumonia, is intubated and ventilated. While in the CT scanner to determine whether he has acute respiratory distress syndrome, the patient suffers a cardiac arrest with pulseless electrical activity (PEA). CPR was initiated, and the endotracheal tube,…
Sonosite handheld ultrasound for global health missions

Portable Ultrasound Machine for International Medical Missions

Dr. Russell Engevik is an emergency room physician from California who volunteers with Lighthouse Medical Missions.He recently sent a video showing us how he utilises a borrowed Sonosite iViz while working with patients in the hospital in the small fishing village of Tanji, The Gambia.The Gambia is a resource-poor nation in West Africa with an economy that relies primarily upon tourism. Less than 6% of the land is arable, and the main crop grown in the country is peanuts.The Gambia is nearly entirely surrounded by the country of Senegal, except for the section that is bordered by the Atlantic…
FUJIFILM Sonosite Donates Portable Ultrasound Systems to Refugee Rescue Organization

Global Health: FUJIFILM Sonosite Donates Ultrasound Systems to Refugee Rescue Organisation

 FUJIFILM Sonosite has donated two M-Turbo point-of-care ultrasound systems to the non-governmental sea rescue organisation Proactiva Open Arms, based in Badalona, Spain, to support efforts in rescuing refugees.Proaativa Open Arms specialises in surveillance and rescue missions of refugee-filled boats in the Aegean and Central Mediterranean seas. People fleeing civil war, poverty, and persecution in their own countries have headed for Southern European shores. Boats that break down in the water are abandoned by the operators (usually smugglers) and refugees are left stranded in the…
Clinician using a Sonosite ultrasound system to guide a needle for acute pain treatment in a hospital setting

Treating Acute Pain Without Opioids

For the past 20-odd years in the United States, traumatic and acute conditions have often been treated in the Emergency Room using opioid drugs. Now, with the effects of a nationwide opioid addiction crisis becoming increasingly dire, hospitals and trauma centres are looking for new ways to treat pain without prescribing addictive opioid painkillers.The goal of reducing opioid prescriptions is especially important for patients who are recovering from addiction to opioids. The Huffington Post has published a video that follows one patient’s story as he recovers from a shattered femur at the…
Sonosite Edge II at the Gaes Titan Desert in 2017

Sonosite Edge II at the 2017 Gaes Titan Desert Race

The Gaes Titan Desert by Garmin is a 6-day endurance bike race over mountain terrain; the 2017 edition takes place in Morocco. From April 30-May 5, the Titan Desert saw over 463 top-level mountain bikers cover 380 miles of unyielding desert in gruelling conditions.Dr. Marc Bausili, an anaesthetist at the Sant Pau Hospital in Barcelona and a member of the Titan Desert medical team, knew what kind of injuries would be the most common, and what kind of equipment would be the most useful.“We knew from our experience of similar events,” says Bausili, “that with so many participants, and the…