Portable ultrasound can help nephrologists detect fluid in the lungs of patients with end-stage kidney disease, according to research to be presented at the Southern Regional Meeting of the American Federation for Medical Research in New Orleans.
Diagnosing lung fluid in these patients is typically done by listening to the chest with a stethoscope and measuring blood pressure, said study lead Dr. Omar Saleem of the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University. But these techniques can be unreliable, he said in a university statement.
Saleem and colleagues examined 24 patients with end-stage kidney disease, using an ultrasound probe on the patients' chests as part of the normal physical exam. Lung fluid appeared as B-lines: reflections of the fluid appeared as long, vertical white lines. The higher the number of B-lines and the brighter they were, the more fluid was present, the group found. Using ultrasound in this way could help guide dialysis treatments, according to Saleem.
