Clinical value of bedside abdominal sonography performed by certified sonographer in emergency evaluation of blunt abdominal trauma

Reliability of Focused Assessment With Sonography for Trauma in the Diagnosis of Blunt Torso Trauma

Objective:

Focused assessment with sonography for trauma (FAST) is a widely used imaging technique for the diagnosis of blunt abdominal trauma and has its limitations and advantages. A meta-analysis was completed to evaluate the reliability of FAST, in the diagnosis of blunt torso trauma.

Materials and Methods:

A search was completed with Google Scholar, PubMed, National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), MEDLINE, and Medscape databases, from 1993 up to 2020. Eligible studies were included for information about FAST examination of abdominal trauma. The animal research was excluded from this review process. The eligible studies were first categorized and then data analysis was performed, according to specific pathologic conditions. This literature review retrieved studies’ sample size, application, sensitivity, and a specificity of diagnosis using FAST for abdominal trauma.

Results:

In total, 100 articles were identified through the database search. Besides, five articles were identified through other sources. Then, screening was performed, and as such, 46 published studies were included that had a qualitative synthesis.

Conclusion:

FAST has a high sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of blunt abdominal trauma. However, a large range of sensitivity and specificity of FAST in the evaluation of torso trauma reveal that sonography is operator, technique, and equipment dependent.

Small bowel perforation after low-velocity trauma: a case report

We report the case of a 63-year-old patient with a low-velocity abdominal trauma and bowel perforation. The patient slipped on a wet floor and fell down the stairs. On admission, the patient complained about abdominal pain. A computed tomography scan showed traumatic hematoma of the jejunum in the left upper quadrant and a small amount of intra-abdominal air. Also rib fractures on the left side were diagnosed. We performed a diagnostic laparoscopy and found a bowel perforation, which was manually repaired.