Abstract
Background. A nonrecognized pneumothorax (PTX) may become a life-threatening tension PTX. A reliable point-of-care diagnostic tool could help in reduce this risk. For this purpose, we investigated the feasibility of the use of the PneumoScan, an innovative device based on micropower impulse radar (MIR). Patients and Methods. addition to a standard diagnostic protocol including clinical examination, chest X-ray (CXR), and computed tomography (CT), 24 consecutive patients with chest trauma underwent PneumoScan testing in the shock trauma room to exclude a PTX. Results. The application of the PneumoScan was simple, quick, and reliable without functional disorder. Clinical examination and CXR each revealed one and PneumoScan three out of altogether four PTXs (sensitivity 75%, specificity 100%, positive predictive value 100%, and negative predictive value 95%). The undetected PTX did not require intervention. Conclusion. The PneumoScan as a point-of-care device offers additional diagnostic value in patient management following chest trauma. Further studies with more patients have to be performed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the device.
Highlights
Thoracic trauma is frequent in multiple trauamatized patients
chest X-ray (CXR), and computed tomography (CT) scan only are available in hospital and ultrasound is not used regularly in the prehospital setting
Four one-sided PTXs were diagnosed by CT scan, three of them on the right side, one on the left side
Summary
Thoracic trauma is frequent in multiple trauamatized patients. According to the current annual report of the TraumaRegister of the German Trauma Society (DGU) 56% of 10766 documented severe trauma patients with Injury Severity Score (ISS) ≥ 16 points showed thoracic injuries with an Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) ≥ 3 points [1]. Primary routine diagnostics in shock trauma room include a clinical examination and conventional CXR. A reliable point-of-care diagnostic tool could help in reduce this risk. For this purpose, we investigated the feasibility of the use of the PneumoScan, an innovative device based on micropower impulse radar (MIR). Addition to a standard diagnostic protocol including clinical examination, chest X-ray (CXR), and computed tomography (CT), 24 consecutive patients with chest trauma underwent PneumoScan testing in the shock trauma room to exclude a PTX. Clinical examination and CXR each revealed one and PneumoScan three out of altogether four PTXs (sensitivity 75%, specificity 100%, positive predictive value 100%, and negative predictive value 95%). The PneumoScan as a point-of-care device offers additional diagnostic value in patient management following chest trauma. Further studies with more patients have to be performed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the device
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