Focused sonographic examination of the heart, lungs and deep veins in acute admitted patients with respiratory symptoms

Background Acutely admitted patients with respiratory symptoms remains a diagnostic challenge. At the primary evaluation the clinician has to rely on the clinical examination when initiating treatment and further diagnostic work up. Several studies have questioned the diagnostic performance of the clinical examination. In addition, most of the diseases, which are commonly seen in patients with acute respiratory symptoms, can be diagnosed using sonography. Sonography could be integrated as a part of the primary evaluation, potentially improving the diagnostic performance. We therefore evaluated the use of sonographic examination of the heart, lungs and deep veins, performed within one hour of the primary evaluation, in acute admitted patients with respiratory symptoms.