10 A Rapid, Simple and Inexpensive Method for Construction of Peripheral Vascular Ultrasound Phantoms

Abstract

Background and Introduction: Emergency department bedside ultrasound has grown to include ultrasound guidance of vascular access, most recently, peripheral IV access has been described with ultrasound guidance. Simulation of procedures that are crucial to clinical practice is an efficient and reliable way to train and assess competency prior to performance on an actual patient. Ultrasound phantoms that simulate patient anatomy allow the development of hand‐eye coordination, orientation and manipulation of the instruments in a controlled setting. In an effort to obviate the cost of commercial products I have developed a very simple and rapid method for building vascular ultrasound phantoms for teaching ultrasound guided peripheral IV placement.Materials and Methods: Using easily obtainable and inexpensive materials, a simple method is described which allows construction of the phantom in less than 1 hour. This method requires no special tools or construction skills. The total cost for 1 phantom is about $30.00. Most of the components can be reused when the phantom needs to be repoured – the cost to repour a phantom is less than 2.Results: These phantoms are realistic in terms of visualization of deep upper extremity veins, and include fluid filled vessels which are gravity fed by colored saline. The system is versatile and can be customized to fit the needs of the individual user. Attendees will be provided with a CD comprising a complete materials list with sources of supply, a PowerPoint presentation to guide construction with each step detailed using digital photographs, and videos of use of the phantom.