Background and Objectives:Over the past few years, ultrasonography is increasingly being used to confirm the correct placement of endotracheal tube (ETT). In our study, we aimed to compare it with the traditional clinical methods and the gold standard quantitative waveform capnography. Two primary outcomes were measured in our study. First was the sensitivity and specificity of ultrasonography against the other two methods to confirm endotracheal intubation. The second primary outcome assessed was the time taken for each method to confirm tube placement in an emergency setting.Methods:This is a single-centered, prospective cohort study conducted in an emergency department of a tertiary care hospital. We included 100 patients with indication of emergency intubation by convenient sampling. The intubation was performed as per standard hospital protocol. As part of the study protocol, ultrasonography was used to identify ETT placement simultaneously with the intubation procedure along with quantitative waveform capnography (end-tidal carbon dioxide) and clinical methods. Confirmation of tube placement and time taken for the same were noted by three separate health-care staffs.Results and Discussion:Out of the 100 intubation attempts, five (5%) had esophageal intubations. The sensitivity and specificity of diagnosis using ultrasonography were 97.89% and 100%, respectively. This was statistically comparable with the other two modalities. The time taken to confirm tube placement with ultrasonography was 8.27 ± 1.54 s compared to waveform capnography and clinical methods which were 18.06 ± 2.58 and 20.72 ± 3.21 s, respectively. The time taken by ultrasonography was significantly less.Conclusions:Ultrasonography confirmed tube placement with comparable sensitivity and specificity to quantitative waveform capnography and clinical methods. But then, it yielded results considerably faster than the other two modalities.

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Computers were originally intended to crunch numbers, store and retrieve data at high speeds, and create accounting reports. New software and even new computers have changed the use of computers in today′s business. The growth of a technology called artificial intelligence (AI) attempts to make a computer capable of manipulating symbols. A branch of AI that has evolved recently attempts to capture knowledge and perform tasks that would require a human expert. These types of computer systems are called knowledge‐based expert systems. Knowledge‐based expert systems, also called expert systems, allow computers to assist in expert human tasks involving: complex planning and scheduling; diagnosis of diseases; locating mineral deposits; configuring complex computer hardware; and trouble‐shooting locomotive problems. Expert systems are expected to change the way businesses operate by altering the way people think about solving problems. Conducts a brief investigation into the underlying philosophy of this new software for computers.