We’ve been following GE Healthcare’s Vscan portable ultrasound for nearly two years, and now Scripps Health has announced results of the first peer reviewed study of the device. The ultrasound system, which weighs just one pound and has roughly the footprint of a smartphone, has been marketed as a modern replacement for stethoscopes, so researchers tested its ability to diagnose structural heart conditions. The results of the study were published in yesterday’s issue of Annals of Internal Medicine:
In the study, pocket ultrasound images were adequate for visualizing ejection fraction 95 percent of the time, wall motion abnormality 83 percent of the time, left ventricular end-diastolic dimension 95 percent of the time, pericardial effusion 94 percent of the time, mitral valve 90 percent of the time, aortic valve 82 percent of the time, and inferior vena cava (the large vein carrying blood to the heart) size 75 percent of the time. Accuracy of interpretation of pocket ultrasound images was highest when assessing ejection fraction and aortic valve, and lowest when assessing inferior vena cava size. Accuracy and between-physician agreement was higher for experienced cardiologists than for less experienced cardiology fellows.
Product page: Vscan
Study abstract at Annals of Internal Medicine: Is Pocket Mobile Echocardiography the Next-Generation Stethoscope? A Cross-sectional Comparison of Rapidly Acquired Images With Standard Transthoracic Echocardiography
Flashbacks: GE’s Vscan, World’s Smallest Portable Ultrasound, Now Available Worldwide; A Closer Look at GE’s Vscan Pocket Ultrasound ; More Details About The New GE Vscan Ultrasound System; GE’s New Ultra Small Ultrasound May Become as Ubiquitous as Stethoscope
