Live Stream of Emergency Ultrasound to Improve Diagnostics in Prehospital Medical Care: a Feasibility Study

Prehospital emergency ultrasound (PEU) is being increasingly used in different preclinical emergency systems across the world. Ultrasound examinations in emergency situations, however, remain challenging even in the hospital setting despite the availability of standardized approaches such as Focused Assessment with Sonography for Trauma (FAST). Preclinical circumstances further complicate the adequate execution of an additional diagnostic tool such as PEU on the scene or inside a medical emergency vehicle. Furthermore, rapid translation of ultrasound findings into meaningful therapeutic consequences is considerably demanding in an environment of limited resources. If focused PEU is correctly used and patients' condition allows emergency doctors a careful ultrasound examination, it is possible to differentiate life-threatening diagnoses. PEU should be implemented in the management of emergency patients affected by trauma, cardiac arrest/shock or respiratory problems. To date it is unclear whether PEU results in improved outcome.

Some emergency cases present difficult challenges in the prehospital ultrasound examination. Portable devices designed for PEU suggest the possibility of increasing the use of ultrasound "in the field". However, to the investigator's knowledge, opportunities for real-time consultation with a second specialist including live transmission of the ultrasound picture are not being provided at any preclinical emergency facility.