Trends in ultrasound examination in family practice

Abstract

Background:Ultrasound examination is very frequently used for the evaluation of abnormalities in various organs of the body. Our aim was to determine whether the requests by family physicians (FPs) for ultrasound examinations were appropriate. Our secondary objective was to enumerate positive and negative ultrasound reports for various diagnostic indications.Materials and Methods:This cross-sectional study was conducted during the period of month between June and August 2010, at the Family Medicine Department of North West Armed Forces Prince Salman Hospital, Tabuk. We reviewed the ultrasound requests of all patients included in this study and the findings of the procedure. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL), version 16.0.Results:The requests and reports of 815 patients for ultrasound were reviewed. Females comprised 58.7% of the referred cases. The mean age of the sample at referral was 30 ± 18.5 for females and 34 ± 20.7 for males. Only 46% of the request forms contained conclusive information and instructions. Abdominal/pelvic ultrasounds were the most frequently requested; Nearly 71.2% of the ultrasound scans were normal. Abdominal/pelvis ultrasound was more likely to be reported as normal than ultrasound scans of other regions (P = 0.007). Patients aged 41-60 years were more likely to have an abnormal ultrasound (P = 0.02).Conclusion:Our findings suggest that FPs have to be educated about imaging referral protocols in order to achieve better outcomes.

Experiences of family physicians after a CME ultrasound course

“…alamri et al [2] described the frequency in primary care of ultrasound scans of different types as follows: abdomen/pelvis (60%), breasts (13%), kidneys, ureters, and bladder (11%), thyroid (8%), scrotum (7%), and hips (1%). Bujnowska-Fedak and krawiecka-Jaworska [20] have mentioned that abdominal pain is the most common problem in general practice.…”

“…Common indications for an ultrasound include chronic abdominal pain, palpable masses, flank pain, hematuria, scrotal swelling, and irregular menstrual cycles [2]. Ultrasonography has been used for 'thyroid' scans (scotland and spain), 'subcutaneous tissues' (Denmark, Norway), 'breasts', 'small parts', 'eyes', 'sinusitis', 'nerves', and 'ENt' [8].…”

“…Ultrasound examinations performed at the primary care level may increase patients' access to primary diagnostic testing. Ultrasonography is a relatively inexpensive, safe, and noninvasive diagnostic tool [2], and its use of dynamic spatial imaging [3] often allows for a diagnosis to be made without the need to perform further imaging tests [4]. as the 'new stethoscope' of a family physician, the ultrasound scanner [5] increasingly contributes to the faster onset of therapy [6] and quicker referral of patients to further diagnosis or specialist care [7].…”

Study on the effects of arm abduction angle and cushion support during sonographic examination on the stiffness of supraspinatus muscle of sonographers using shear wave elastography

“…Except for baseline measurement, participants were instructed to flex their elbow at 90° horizontal to the floor and forearm pronated to simulate sonographer performing an abdominal ultrasound scan, which is the commonest requested ultrasound examination. 23 In addition, participants were instructed to give a downward force of 7.9 N through the ultrasound transducer, which is the mean force used to scan patients with normal BMI and is proved to be independent for job experience. 24 To maintain a constant downward force given through the ultrasound transducer, an electronic balance (SF-400, yousheng, Jiangxi, China) was placed underneath a plastic pillow inside a plastic bag to simulate the slippery surface of patient's body with ultrasound gel.…”

Patient initiated radiology requests: proof of wellness through images

“…Past studies using the model have addressed the phenomenon of doctors fulfilling requests for patient satisfaction (Jerant et al 2018), explored patients' spoken and unspoken expectations during a clinical consultation (Fenton et al 2015) and further explored patients' perceived needs during clinical visits (Benetoli et al 2018). Most of these studies have been situated within a general practice context with requests for prescribed medications (Kravitz et al 2003;Paterniti et al 2010;Hogue et al 2012;Fenton et al 2015), while limited work has focused on patient perceived needs for radiological tests and their experiences around these requests (Alamri et al 2014;Walderhaug et al 2022).…”