My patient has got abdominal pain: identifying biliary problems

Ultrasound. 2014 Nov;22(4):223-8. doi: 10.1177/1742271X14546181. Epub 2014 Aug 4.

Abstract

Right upper quadrant and epigastric abdominal pain are common presenting complaints in the emergency department. With increasing access to point-of-care ultrasound, emergency physicians now have an added tool to help identify biliary problems as a cause of a patient's right upper quadrant pain. Point-of-care ultrasound has a sensitivity of 89.8% (95% CI 86.4-92.5%) and specificity of 88.0% (83.7-91.4%) for cholelithiasis, very similar to radiology-performed ultrasonography. In addition to assessment for cholelithiasis and cholecystitis, point-of-care ultrasound can help emergency physicians to determine whether the biliary system is the source of infection in patients with suspected sepsis. Use of point-of-care ultrasound for the assessment of the biliary system has resulted in more rapid diagnosis, decreasing costs, and shorter emergency department length of stay.

Keywords: PoCUS; Point-of-care ultrasound; cholecystitis; cholelithiasis; emergency medicine; gallbladder.

Publication types

  • Review