The Impact of Fellow-performed Cardiopulmonary Ultrasound Exams

Shock and respiratory failure are common reasons for admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) at our institution. The various causes of acute shock and respiratory failure are traditionally assessed with the use of history, physical examination, chest x-ray, EKG and laboratory studies. Unfortunately, much of this clinical information is either insensitive or non-specific. 1 Critical care ultrasound (CCUS) is a rapid and non-invasive tool, which has been shown to be useful in the intensive care unit to assist in the diagnosis and management of patients in shock or respiratory failure.2 The investigators hypothesize that the trained fellow's interpretation of critical care ultrasound images will be accurate when compared to experts and that ultrasounds will change diagnosis and management of the patient in shock and respiratory failure.