Ultrasound for healthcare providers

Ultrasound is a form of imaging modality used to produce images of soft tissues using non-ionising radiation.

An ultrasound transducer transmits high frequency sound waves to the human body. The sound waves are reflected by soft tissue organs back to the transducer. The reflected sound waves are then analysed by the transducer to produce an image. 

The common uses of ultrasound include:

• diagnosis of heart failure
• focused assessment with sonography for trauma
• ultrasound-guided procedure such as venous access, insertion of chest tube, thoracocentesis, paracentesis
• obstetrics and gynaecological diagnosis such as fibroids, anomaly scan, dating scan
• abdominal conditions, eg, gallstones, cholecystitis
• renal conditions such as hydronephrosis, renal mass
• thyroid conditions such as thyroid nodules, mass.

• Hyperechoic – bright (bones, fat, stones)
• Hypoechoic – dark (cartilage, muscles)
• Anechoic – black (fluid)

• Rapid ultrasound – basics & RUSH exam(external link) 
• Introduction to bedside ultrasound volume 1(external link)
• Introduction to bedside ultrasound volume 2(external link)
• Ultrasound guided regional anesthesia(external link)
• The ICU ultrasound pocket book(external link)
• Handheld cardiac ultrasound – case series(external link)
• Introduction to cardiac ultrasound(external link)
• Introduction to abdominal ultrasound(external link)

"Ultrasound utilisation by emergency medicine physicians has dramatically increased over the last several years. As a majority of emergency rooms have started to store ultrasound machines in their department, it is essential physicians understand how to utilise these machines at the point of care. Mobile apps are fantastic tools for learning ultrasound due to their ability to easily display pictures and videos – critical for ultrasound learning." (Top 5 emergency medicine ultrasound apps(external link) iMedicalApps, 2013)

5 recommended emergency medicine ultrasound apps

• One minute ultrasound(external link) 
• Emergency ultrasound handbook(external link) 
• Emergency medicine ultrasound(external link) 
• SonoSupport – a clinical emergency medicine and critical care ultrasound reference tool(external link)

• A beginner's guide to ultrasound(external link) Geeky Medics
  Emergency ultrasonography(external link) Emergency Ultrasound Teaching
• Necas M. The clinical ultrasound report – guide for sonographers(external link)  AJUM, 2018
• Laboratories – overview of ultrasound imaging(external link)(external link) Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, US, 2015
  
• Ultrasound Healthify He Puna Waiora, NZ

Ultrasound
Ultrasound in pregnancy