Assessment of Exam Findings in Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) with Point-of-Care Ultrasonography (POCUS)

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which causes the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), poses unique challenges to worldwide healthcare systems. Diagnosis, risk stratification and management strategies continue to be examined. Laboratory testing is vital but has limitations.

Chest imaging has the potential to aid in the identification of patients at high risk for COVID-19. In addition, there is a spectrum of pulmonary disease that varies as the disease progresses and identifying those patients at risk of clinical deterioration would be impactful to clinical practice.

Since most of the pulmonary findings are peripheral and acute myocardial injury is highly prevalent, cardiopulmonary point-of-care ultrasonography (POCUS) has the potential to aid in risk stratification at multiple points in the patient’s course of illness.

Led by Matthew Yocum, MD, MS, assistant professor of medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, this study’s researchers will use lung and heart ultrasound in patients with or under investigation for COVID-19, to determine if there are identifiable findings that can improve diagnosis and identify those at risk for pulmonary or cardiac decompensation.

This project is supported by the UMN Campus Public Health Officer's CO:VID (Collaborative Outcomes: Visionary Innovation & Discovery) grants program, which support University of Minnesota faculty to catalyze and energize small-scale research projects designed to address and mitigate the COVID-19 virus and its associated risks.