Opinion Review
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2021. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
Artif Intell Med Imaging. Jun 28, 2021; 2(3): 56-63
Published online Jun 28, 2021. doi: 10.35711/aimi.v2.i3.56
Implementation of lung ultrasound in the triage of pregnant women during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemics
Arzu Bilge Tekin, Murat Yassa
Arzu Bilge Tekin, Murat Yassa, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Sancaktepe Sehit Prof. Dr. Ilhan Varank Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul 34785, Sancaktepe, Turkey
Author contributions: Tekin AB and Yassa M contributed equally to this work; Tekin AB and Yassa M performed the research, analyzed the data and wrote the manuscript; all authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors report no conflict of interest.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Arzu Bilge Tekin, MD, Associate Specialist, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Sancaktepe Sehit Prof. Dr. Ilhan Varank Training and Research Hospital, Emek Mahallesi, Namık Kemal Caddesi No. 54, Istanbul 34785, Sancaktepe, Turkey. arzubilgetekin@gmail.com
Received: April 10, 2021
Peer-review started: April 10, 2021
First decision: April 28, 2021
Revised: May 6, 2021
Accepted: June 4, 2021
Article in press: June 4, 2021
Published online: June 28, 2021
Processing time: 89 Days and 11.1 Hours
Abstract

Lung ultrasound (US) has been shown that it is able to detect interstitial lung disease, subpleural consolidations and acute respiratory distress syndrome in clinical and physical studies that assess its role in upper respiratory infections. It is used worldwide in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak and the effectiveness has been assessed in several studies. Fast diagnosis of COVID-19 is essential in deciding for patient isolation, clinical care and reducing transmission. Imaging the lung and pleura by ultrasound is efficient, cost-effective, and safe and it is recognized as rapid, repeatable, and reliable. Obstetricians are already using the US and are quite proficient in doing so. During the pandemic, performing lung US (LUS) right after the fetal assessment until reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction results are obtained, particularly in settings that have a centralized testing center, was found feasible for the prediction of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The use of LUS is efficient in the triage and monitoring of pregnant women. Clinicians dealing with pregnant women should consider LUS as the first-line diagnostic tool in pregnant women during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemics; Lung; Ultrasound imaging; Pregnancy; SARS-CoV-2; Triage

Core Tip: Lung ultrasound (US) is based on specific pattern recognition and does not require complex measurements, therefore obstetricians can easily learn and use lung ultrasound (LUS) in the pandemic. LUS examination can be a routine after a routine obstetric US examination. Fast diagnosis of coronavirus disease 2019 is essential in deciding for patient isolation, clinical care, and reducing transmission. Clinicians dealing with pregnant women should consider LUS as the first-line diagnostic tool in pregnant women during the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 pandemic.