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Lung ultrasound B‐lines in exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Author(s) -
Sriram Krishna B.,
Singh Maninder
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
internal medicine journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.596
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1445-5994
pISSN - 1444-0903
DOI - 10.1111/imj.13370
Subject(s) - medicine , exacerbation , copd , natriuretic peptide , lung , pulmonary disease , respiratory system , obstructive lung disease , respiratory disease , intensive care medicine , disease , cardiology , heart failure
We report on preliminary observations on performing lung ultrasound ( LUS ) in patients admitted to hospital with an exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ( COPD ). We found that LUS had high specificity and moderate sensitivity in identifying patients with elevated B‐type natriuretic peptide. Thus, we hypothesise that LUS may have utility in screening COPD patients with an exacerbation to identify the sub‐group with elevated natriuretic peptides and are at risk of increased cardiovascular mortality. The use of LUS in patients with acute and chronic respiratory disorders is increasing and its role in COPD patients is an interesting subject for future research.