The role of «point of care ultrasound» in medical triage of COVID-19 patients: a systematic review

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: In the conditions of primary triage of patients with the new coronavirus infection, various medical imaging methods, including «point of care ultrasound», have become key.OBJECTIVE: The aim of this paper is to review data published during the pandemic on the assessment of the role of various ultrasound diagnostic methods in medical triage of patients with COVID-19.MATERIALS AND METHODS: The authors performed a systematic literature search in Russian and English for the period up to March 10, 2022 using various databases and repositories (Embase, Medline/PubMed, Researchgate, medrxiv.org, RSCI/elibrary). The search was carried out on the keywords «COVID-19», «coronavirus», «коронавирус», «SARS-CoV-2», «2019nCOV», «lung ultrasound», «POCUS», «point of care ultrasound», «прикроватный ультразвук», «ультразвуковое сканирование легких», «triage», «сортировка».RESULTS: The final analysis included 42 publications on different aspects of the use of point of care ultrasound during the pandemic. Of considerable interest are the technical features of the research, classifications and triage algorithms used in different countries.CONCLUSION: The widespread introduction of «point of care ultrasound» technology in the prehospital, emergency department and intensive care units greatly facilitates clinical decision making, including in the initial assessment of the severity of the condition of patients with pneumonia caused by SARS-CoV-2.