J Emerg Med
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Bedside ultrasound for the detection of soft tissue foreign bodies: a cadaveric study.
The objective of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of bedside ultrasound, as performed by emergency physicians with typical equipment, in detecting small, soft tissue foreign bodies, using a cadaveric model. This was a prospective study, using 6 unembalmed human cadavers and 6 ultrasound-credentialed, emergency medicine residency-trained physicians as sonographers. Incisions were made in 150 total sites of the extremities and each site was randomly assigned one of five groups: wood, metal, plastic, glass, or no foreign body. ⋯ Sensitivity for individual sonographers ranged from 40.8% to 72.3% (average 52.6% +/- 13.3%), and specificity ranged from 30% to 66.7% (average 47.2% +/- 15.1%). Inter-observer reliability was poor. In our model, bedside ultrasound performed by emergency physicians was neither sensitive nor specific for the presence of small soft tissue foreign bodies.