Lung Ultrasound Performed by Primary Care Physicians for Clinically Suspected Community-Acquired Pneumonia: A Multicenter Prospective Study

Francisco Javier Rodríguez-Contreras; Antonio Calvo-Cebrián; Juncal Díaz-Lázaro; Miguel Cruz-Arnés; Fernando León-Vázquez; María del Carmen Lobón-Agúndez; Francisco Javier Palau-Cuevas; Paloma Henares-García; Fernando Gavilán-Martínez; Sandra Fernández-Plaza; Carmelo Prieto-Zancudo

doi:10.1370/afm.2796

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RE: Lung Ultrasound Performed by Primary Care Physicians for Clinically Suspected Community-Acquired Pneumonia: A Multicenter Prospective Study
Yuva Vidwans, Pete Jordanides, Tenzing Tsepak and Lorraine S Wallace

Published on: 12 October 2022

Published on: (12 October 2022)
Page navigation anchor for RE: Lung Ultrasound Performed by Primary Care Physicians for Clinically Suspected Community-Acquired Pneumonia: A Multicenter Prospective Study
RE: Lung Ultrasound Performed by Primary Care Physicians for Clinically Suspected Community-Acquired Pneumonia: A Multicenter Prospective Study
Yuva Vidwans, Undergraduate, The Ohio State University
Other Contributors:
Pete Jordanides, Undergraduate

Tenzing Tsepak, Undergraduate

Lorraine S Wallace, Associate Professor—College of Medicine
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has brought pulmonary critical care management to the forefront. Mounting evidence over the past two years clearly indicates the stark risk of pneumonia among patients hospitalized with COVID-19.1 Far beyond the scope of the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing diagnostic accuracy of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in primary care settings is critical in mitigating spread and symptom management.

While your physician sample size was rather small (n=21), we found it interesting that two physicians with the highest diagnostic error rates also had the most extensive lung ultrasound training and experience. As such, we are curious about the possibility of implementing competency versus time-based lung ultrasound training. Do you think that primary care physicians, in this sample, would be receptive of an end-of-training lung ultrasound competency assessment? Could this type of competency assessment improve diagnostic accuracy in the long term?

This study was conducted in Madrid—Spain’s largest metropolitan area—where healthcare resources are more widely accessible to both providers and patients. From our perspective, we feel it would be advantageous to replicate this study in regions with less healthcare resources throughout Spain. Extending lung ultrasound training to remote and rural areas could be transformational in primary care physicians being able to accurately diagnose and treat CAP in ambulatory settings. Thank you for sharing y...
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The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has brought pulmonary critical care management to the forefront. Mounting evidence over the past two years clearly indicates the stark risk of pneumonia among patients hospitalized with COVID-19.1 Far beyond the scope of the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing diagnostic accuracy of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in primary care settings is critical in mitigating spread and symptom management.

While your physician sample size was rather small (n=21), we found it interesting that two physicians with the highest diagnostic error rates also had the most extensive lung ultrasound training and experience. As such, we are curious about the possibility of implementing competency versus time-based lung ultrasound training. Do you think that primary care physicians, in this sample, would be receptive of an end-of-training lung ultrasound competency assessment? Could this type of competency assessment improve diagnostic accuracy in the long term?

This study was conducted in Madrid—Spain’s largest metropolitan area—where healthcare resources are more widely accessible to both providers and patients. From our perspective, we feel it would be advantageous to replicate this study in regions with less healthcare resources throughout Spain. Extending lung ultrasound training to remote and rural areas could be transformational in primary care physicians being able to accurately diagnose and treat CAP in ambulatory settings. Thank you for sharing your work with the primary care research community.

1) Wiersinga WJ, Rhodes A, Cheng AC, Peacock SJ, Prescott HC. Pathophysiology, transmission, diagnosis, and treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): A review. JAMA. 2020;324(8):782-793. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.12839
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Competing Interests: None declared.