CHEST Guidelines-Lung-Ultrasonography-in-Diagnosis-of-Transient-Tac

Lung-Ultrasonography-in-Diagnosis-of-Transient-Tac

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The correspondence discusses the use of thoracic ultrasonography (TUS) in diagnosing transient tachypnea of the newborn (TTN), as presented in a study by Liu et al. The study supports TUS for its safety, repeatability, and practicality in emergency settings but raises concerns about its limitations. Criticisms include the restricted view of the pleural surface due to anatomical constraints, the inability to differentiate among various lung conditions like pneumonia and atelectasis, and the issue of artifacts such as B lines which lack specificity. The letter emphasizes cautious interpretation of TUS results and stresses the importance of comprehensive clinical and radiological diagnoses before relying on TUS, especially concerning ethical and legal implications in treatment decisions.<br /><br />Dr. Liu, in response, recognizes the critiques but maintains a different perspective. They argue that LUS (lung ultrasonography) can effectively detect lung diseases that standard chest radiography may miss due to factors like small-area detection limitations in radiography and suggest that LUS could be more reliable in certain scenarios. For instance, LUS showed higher sensitivity in diagnosing neonatal pulmonary atelectasis compared to chest radiography. They further highlight that while no ultrasound features are disease-specific, a detailed analysis of LUS findings can aid in distinguishing between different lung conditions. Liu supports the growing opinion among experts advocating for LUS as a potential replacement for chest radiography in neonatal care due to its higher sensitivity and the broader scope of detection without dependency on patient positioning.

Keywords

thoracic ultrasonography

transient tachypnea of the newborn

Liu et al.

lung conditions

neonatal care

chest radiography

pleural surface

B lines

LUS sensitivity

clinical diagnoses