Pediatric emergency care
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Pediatric emergency care · Sep 2023
Review Case ReportsPoint-of-Care Ultrasound for the Diagnosis of Pediatric Foreign Body Ingestion: A Narrative Review and Illustrative Case Report.
Foreign body ingestion (FBI) is a frequent concern in emergency departments. Clinical guidelines recommend performing plain x-rays as the primary modality of diagnosis. Although point-of-care ultrasound (PoCUS) has increasingly been integrated into the daily practice of emergency medicine, it has been poorly investigated in the diagnostic approach for FBI.This review aims to highlight the current state of PoCUS use for pediatric FBI.The following research question was considered in this narrative review: Is PoCUS useful for FBI management? ⋯ This review suggests that PoCUS might be a reliable modality for the initial management of FBI. PoCUS can locate, identify, and evaluate the size of the FB in a wide range of materials and gastrointestinal locations. Point-of-care ultrasound could eventually become the go-to modality in the case of radiolucent FB, thus avoiding the use of radiation. Further studies are nevertheless required to validate PoCUS use for FBI management.