Point of Care ultrasonography use in primary care: a case report

This study presents a case in which point-of-care ultrasonography was used by a radiographer and a General and Family Medicine Physician in a primary care health unit as a decision-making tool for an outpatient clinical case. The objective of this report is
to demonstrate the usefulness of sonography as a decision-making tool, to aid in a peripheral and with limited technological resources primary care health unit.
A patient was admitted to a primary care health unit with worsening breathing difficulty. The patient had a prior hospitalization four months earlier due to a bilateral pleural effusion of unknown origin, which was diagnosed by computed tomography. A follow-up
computed tomography scan was performed on an outpatient basis, revealing a new small pericardial effusion and persistent bilateral pleural effusions.
As the patient's condition continued to worsen, General and Family Medicine Physician ordered lung radiography, and a sonographic evaluation was done by the radiographer to access the patient's condition.
Based on the radiological findings, there is clear evidence of a substantial increase in the patient's pericardial effusion. This, in conjunction with the patient's current clinical state, warrants a transfer to a referral hospital (RH) for further evaluation and treatment.