Advertorial: Handheld ultrasound: Providing a window into patients’ hearts at the point of care

This advertorial is sponsored by GE HealthCare

Experiencing symptoms like chest pain, shortness of breath, nausea or a rapid heartbeat can be extremely scary and overwhelming—especially when it happens out of the blue and due to an unknown cause. Often these symptoms can be the result of a wide range of conditi­ons, including diges­tive problems, anxiety or stress.

However, in some cases these symptoms signal a more serious condi­on that requires urgent medical attenti­on. Common symptoms of a cardiac issue can vary between genders, and there can also be variability from individual to individual. Importantly, the prevalence of cardiovascular disease is growing indicati­ve of other possible health issues.¹

In a heart attack situati­on, for example, the longer treatment is delayed, the longer the heart muscle goes without oxygen, damaging the cells or even causing them to die.² This makes prompt diagnosis and treatment vital, because for cardiology pa­ents, ­me is heart muscle—­me is everything.

How traditional diagnosis works today

A trip to the emergency department (ED) can often be complicated and stressful for patients, especially when they present with a poten­tial cardiac event. When a pa­tient arrives at the ED with suspected heart attack, emergency clinicians snap into ac­tion to determine the nature and severity of the pa­tient’s case. This requires close teamwork between triage nurses, physicians and other clinicians who will ask the pati­ent or caregiver ques­tions about symptoms, medical history, medicati­ons and more, before conduc­ting physical exams and ordering diagnosti­c tests like electrocardiogram (ECG), blood work, imaging and more. All of this takes ­me and resources—which are often in short supply in the ED.

Although point-of-care ultrasound has long been a crucial tool for diagnosing heart disease—including cardiac arrest—in the ED, now clinicians have access to handheld, portable, and easy-to-use ultrasound devices designed for cardiac and vascular assessments – and literally fit into a pocket. This technology can help diagnose a pa­tient wherever they are and direct them to appropriate treatment.

The impact of portable ultrasound devices

Handheld, wireless ultrasound offers a prac­tical op­tion that can replace more expensive and less accessible diagnosti­c imaging, streamlining workflows and reducing demands on already overloaded tradi­tional imaging resources. This allows clinicians to expedite care decisions and help pa­tients receive treatment right away when every second counts.

GE HealthCare pioneered the first colour pocket-sized ultrasound, Vscan, in 2010 and has since conti­nued to revolu­tionise the way clinicians see pati­ents. In 2021, GE HealthCare launched the Vscan Air CL for abdominal imaging, obstetric assessments, and more, and now they have launched the next innovati­ve genera­tion of handheld ultrasound technology, the Vscan Air SL.

Vscan Air SL is designed to help make it easier to acquire high quality ultrasound images. It is one of the smallest portable, wireless ultrasound devices designed for rapid cardiac and vascular assessments. This allows clinicians to efficiently collect and view cardiac images of pa­tients in real ­me during a physical exam, helping to accelerate diagnosis and treatment decisions both inside and outside the hospital. To date, there are more than 50,000 systems from the Vscan product suite in the pockets of clinicians, impacti­ng the care of more than an esti­mated 100 million pati­ents worldwide.

For Steffen Mueller, who leads product development for GE HealthCare’s Vscan product suite, the impact of portable ultrasound devices is personal.

In 2016, clinicians scanned his spouse’s caro­d artery with Vscan Extend, an earlier version of GE HealthCare’s pocket-sized ultrasound. The image appeared to show a suspicious narrowing, which prompted her to have a comprehensive ultrasound examinati­on by a doctor who confirmed the narrowing as a subtotal occlusion: a dangerous blockage of the blood vessels that can cause a stroke. A few months later, she had an operati­on that may have saved her live. Handheld ultrasound enabled her care team to catch the narrowing early and take ac­tion.

“Our pocket-sized ultrasound may have helped save my wife’s life,” said Steffen. “This experience with my wife inspired me—and my team—to broaden our next generati­on of handheld ultrasound… to primary care physicians who can apply this quick-look tool to their pati­ents. Vscan Air combines crystal clear

images and the power of a high-performance ultrasound machine in a small, lightweight and wireless dual-probe that enables whole body scanning and comfortably fits in the palm of your hand and in your pocket.”

Ultrasound’s versatility across a variety of care settings

With its combinati­on of portability and image quality, handheld ultrasound is well-positioned to help clinicians conduct cardiac and vascular assessments across a wide variety of diverse care settings, including:

• First Responders – Patients traveling by ambulance are usually experiencing a critical situation that is often life-threatening. When equipped with a technology like Vscan Air SL, EMS teams have a tool in the palm of their hands that can give them a window into a patient’s cardiac anatomy and provide them with answers very quickly, beyond what they can learn from a basic physical exam. This can help to triage the patient while enroute to the hospital so the ED is better informed about the patient’s needs before arrival.
• Emergency Departments– When a patient does present to the ED with a cardiac issue, technologies like Vscan Air SL can provide more specific guidance on is the severity of the individual’s condition, especially when clinicians in the ED setting have limited background on the patient’s symptoms and overall health. These devices allow them to quickly see what is happening inside the patient’s body and evaluate their situation, providing timely information to inform care decisions and proper engagement of key specialists, as needed, to speed time to treatment.
• Mobile Clinics – Mobile clinics are becoming a more popular healthcare model for some patients. In these settings, ultrasounds are key components for care teams, as these devices can provide a lot more information than standard physical examinations and other assessments, which may be limiting. These devices can help providers decide the proper setting and treatment for the patient.

The impact of portable, handheld ultrasound devices on care is poised to be transformati­ve, and GE HealthCare is at the forefront of this innova­on. Read more about Vscan Air SL here.

References

1. Chang YJ, Chang SL, Chong E, et al. Cardiovascular Emergencies. Biomed Res Int. 2017; 2017: 7210261. doi: 10.1155/2017/7210261. Epub 2017 Jul 2. PMID: 28752094; PMCID: PMC5511652.
2. “Heart Attack (Myocardial Infarc­tion).” Cleveland Clinic. h”ps://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/16818-heart-a”ackmyocardial-infarc­on. Accessed: July 24, 2023

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