Beyond the Block: Why Would an Anaesthesiologist Use Ultrasound?
Increasingly, anaesthesiologists have been using ultrasound guidance to help visualise soft tissue anatomy and nerve location while performing regional nerve blocks. Correct placement of local anaesthetics lead to long lasting pain management and enhanced recovery times.
But beyond the block, how does ultrasound help anaesthesiologists do their jobs?
The answer has a lot to do with the changing practise of medicine.
In the United States, anaesthesiologists are increasingly expected to perform a wider role in care of patients—that is, care before, during, and after surgery—a specialty known…
User Stories: Point-of-Care Ultrasound Aids Elephant Conservation in Vietnam
Vietnam’s wild elephant population has dropped from over 2,000 animals to less than 100 in 20 years, making the country’s 60 or so captive elephants vital to preserving the genetic lines of this critically endangered species.Dr. Willem Schaftenaar, Veterinary Advisor to the European Studbook of Elephants, has been assisting the Đăk Lăk Elephant Conservation Centre (ECC) in identifying female elephants suitable for breeding. With the help the Animals Asia Foundation and a Sonosite Edge, Dr. Schaftenaar and the ECC are working with owners to establish a…
Reducing The Opioid Epidemic with POC Ultrasound
Every day, 91 Americans die from opioid (prescription drugs or heroin) overdoses. This is the worst drug epidemic in the history of the United States.
How can emergency physicians help patients manage pain without accidentally getting them addicted to prescription opioids?
While federal and local governments have been slow to respond to this health crisis, individual hospitals and medical centres have launched their own initiatives to begin tackling the problem of opioid abuse. Recognising that prescription opiates are often the first step toward opioid addiction, St. Joseph’s Health Care…
User Stories: St. Joseph's Reduces Time and Cost with POCUS Vascular Access
If you had to choose between inserting a PICC line (40-45 minutes) and inserting a PIV with ultrasound guidance (5-10 minutes), which would you choose to perform? What if your patient weighed less than 5 lbs? Or more than 500?
When you’re working with some of the smallest, most vulnerable patients, every single needle stick matters more than ever. Whether injecting critical medicine or drawing blood, St. Joseph’s Healthcare System in Paterson, New Jersey, strives to minimize patient pain during needle insertion.
“Before we had the Sonosite ultrasound technology, we had a lot of patients…
2017 - The Year For Expansion In Ultrasound-Guided Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures
HealthCare Business News
Jill Rathbun, Managing Partner at Galileo Consulting Group, Arlington, VA
With the future of the Affordable Care Act in flux, this may be a time for healthcare providers to evaluate their practises and see how they provide more for their patients and communities. By expanding service offerings, healthcare providers can attract more patients and elevate their patient's level of satisfaction. Read this article to find out how 2017 may be the year for expansion of ultrasound-guided surgical procedures using ultrasound guided breast biopsies as an example.
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Ultrasound and Changes in Value-Based Care - Part 1
Uncertainty – especially in economics, government, or healthcare - can be hard to handle. Combine a little bit of uncertainty in Washington D.C. and the medical community and you’ll have a window into 2017, a time when the future of the Affordable Health Care Act and the health sector is in flux. Is there a silver lining here? We believe so. 2017 presents an opportunity for healthcare providers to evaluate how technologies like ultrasound can solve their challenges. By expanding their use of ultrasound, we believe providers can attract more patients, increase their patients’ level of…
CMS Implements AUC Requirements for Advanced Imaging Services
HealthCare Business News
Jill Rathbun, Managing Partner at Galileo Consulting Group, Arlington, VA
The Centres for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have finalised the clinical areas that will be part of the new Appropriate Use Criteria requirements for the ordering of MRI, CT, PET and Nuclear Cardiology studies starting January 1, 2018. CMS has selected shoulder pain, including suspected rotator cuff injury, as one of the priority clinical areas. To learn more about these new requirements so that your practise can be prepared on January 1, 2018, please read the following article in the…
7 Ways to Include POCUS in Medical School Training
When Dr. Peter Steinmetz took on the task of ensuring McGill University’s medical school graduates would be proficient in the use of point-of-care ultrasound, he faced numerous challenges, not the least of which was the fact that the undergraduate medical school curriculum was already full.Dr. Steinmetz’s first step was to convince the curriculum implementation committee that ultrasound is essential for future clinicians. “Ultrasound is performed by clinicians worldwide, and is an ideal adjunct to teaching anatomy and conducting physical examinations,” explains Dr. Steinmetz. “You need to…
Sonosite Ultrasound Gets Dirty at the Spartan Race
On the weekend of July 1 and 2, the pretty ski resort of Morzine in the region of Savoy welcomed the famous and difficult Spartan Race, an obstacle race open to all physical abilities and all levels. Competitors came from all over Europe to take part in the event.
With cold temperatures (54°F [12°C]), mud, rain, and a glacial river, the competition lived up to its reputation. In this type of race, competitors are put through the mill and regrettably injuries are common. When it comes to first aid, it pays to be prepared. Dr. Bensalah is used to extreme competitions. He is…
Fujifilm initiates a Phase I clinical trial of Anti-Cancer Drug FF-10101 in the United States in patients with Relapsed or Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML)
FUJIFILM Corporation (President: Kenji Sukeno) announced the commencement of a Phase I clinical trial of its anti-cancer drug FF-10101 in the Unites States in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukaemia (AML).
AML is a type of haematological malignancy associated with the malignant transformation of hematopoietic stem cells, which generate blood cells, into leukaemia cells. These leukaemia cells then exhibit abnormal growth in the bone marrow and it prevents the generation of blood cells. Furthermore, the leukaemia cells with aberrant growth invade other organs outside the…
Thyroid and Parathyroid Surgery Using Ultrasound-Guided Nerve Blocks
A Sonosite SII point-of-care ultrasound system recently played a key role in an innovative procedure of thyroid surgery without the use of general anaesthetic.Dr. Rüdiger Eichholz, a consultant anaesthetist working for private practise in Stuttgart, Germany, explained the case.“We were approached with an unusual case; a young woman in need of thyroid surgery, but unwilling to have a general anaesthetic due to a childhood medical trauma,” said Dr. Eicholz. “We looked at the possibility of performing an ultrasound-guided block of the cervical nerves pathway – a technique commonly used for…
Global Health: 3 Case Studies Show the Value of POCUS in Resource-Limited Healthcare
Dr. Thomas Sullivan recently returned from Quang Nam province in Vietnam, where he had volunteered at a series of clinics in late July, with the assistance of ASSORV through the Vietnam Health Clinic group of the University of Washington.Dr. Sullivan practises radiology at the Centre for Diagnostic Imaging in Seattle, WA, and borrowed a Sonosite Edge point-of-care ultrasound machine for his trip. Dr. Sullivan reported three medical cases that showed the value of POCUS in resource-limited settings.1). "A perimenopausal woman presented with a history of ovarian cancer, presumably by palpation…
WCUME17 POCUS Chat: Interview with Dr. Peter Steinmetz - PT. 2
Dr. Peter Steinmetz, co-chair of WCUME 2017 and Director of Undergraduate Bedside Ultrasound Teaching at McGill University answers questions around the use of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) and ensuring its proper use worldwide.
You can listen to the audio interview with Dr. Steinmetz here.
Read our first blog featuring Dr. Steinmetz here.
What needs to happen nationally and internationally to improve the consistency of user skills and spread use of POCUS across medical disciplines?
"It all starts with undergraduate medical education (UGME) as the foundation. There needs to be…
Sonosite Portable Ultrasound at the Spartan Race
From July 1-2, the Morzine ski resort in Savoy, France hosted the Spartan Race, an obstacle course open to all physical abilities and all levels. Competitors from all over Europe took part in the event.With cold temperatures (54°F [12°C]), mud, rain, and a glacial river, the competition lived up to its formidable reputation and in this type of race, competitors are put through the mill and injuries are common. When it comes to providing first aid to competitors, it pays to come prepared.Dr. Mourad Bensalah practises medicine in the Intensive Care Unit at St. Anne military hospital in Toulon…
Battling Opioid Over-Prescription from Inside the ED
Did you know that nearly half of all opioid overdoses involve a prescription?Physicians are beginning to tackle the problem at ground zero: in the ED, where many patients receive their first prescription opioids.From treating acute traumatic pain to identifying new ways to alleviate patient suffering, emergency medicine physicians are identifying new ways to alleviate patient suffering without prescribing potentially addictive narcotics. Innovative methods like ultrasound-guided nerve blocks can take patient pain from 10 to 0 in a matter of minutes.Join FUJIFILM Sonosite (booth# 2307) in…
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.
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"Thank you for helping us give…
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
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…
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…
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…