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Showing posts from March, 2017

Bedside (Point of Care) Ultrasound of the Lung--So Good

Last week was a big week. Many patients. Lots of bedside ultrasound. I've blogged on and on about my undying love for ultrasound at the bedside as a part of my physical exam. It keeps being powerful. It saves peoples' lives. It keeps me from making stupid mistakes. I am eternally grateful. This week it helped with the usual things--hearts and bellies and bladders and lumps and bumps. I was able to tell patients what was going well and not so well, in real time, and show them pictures. But ultrasound of the lung needs a little advertisement. Ultrasonographers and radiologists are terrific at imaging the internal organs, even those of tiny babies. Cardiologists and echocardiogram technicians are amazing in their ability to image the heart and describe its innermost workings. Although I leverage my ultrasound abilities by using my other exam and history taking skills, I do not have the extensive training in imaging that these people do. But in the US, only clinicians suc