Point-of-care ultrasonography (POCUS) or emergency Ultrasound is an increasingly affordable and portable technology that is an important part of 21st-century medicine. When appropriately used, POCUS has the potential to expedite diagnosis and improve procedural success and safety. POCUS detect minimal fluid in Abdomen as ascites, or pleural or pericardial fluid more precisely with very high sensitivity and specificity. POCUS is now being adopted in medical education as early as the first year of medical school.
While potentially powerful and versatile, POCUS is a user-dependent technology that has not been formalized or standardized yet within internal medicine residency training programs. Physicians and residency directors are trying to determine whether to incorporate POCUS, and if so, how. In this systematic review, basic concepts and applications of POCUS are examined, as are issues…
