Annals of surgery
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To determine the sensitivity of emergency department ultrasonography (US) in the diagnosis of occult cardiac injuries. ⋯ The sensitivity of US to detect hemopericardium in stable patients was only 86.7%. The 2 main factors that limit the screening are the presence of a hemothorax and air in the pericardial sac. A new regimen for screening of occult injuries to make allowance for this is proposed.