24 Jul How Wireless Handheld Ultrasound Is Changing Point-of-Care Diagnostics
Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) has become one of the most significant advances in modern medical imaging. By allowing clinicians to perform ultrasound examinations at the patient's bedside, it supports faster assessments and more informed clinical decisions. Recent developments in wireless handheld ultrasound technology are making these benefits even more accessible across hospitals, primary care settings, ambulances, and remote healthcare environments.
Unlike traditional cart-based ultrasound systems, wireless handheld devices connect to smartphones, tablets, or dedicated displays, providing high-quality imaging in a compact, portable format. As healthcare providers continue to prioritize efficiency and patient-centered care, these devices are changing how diagnostic imaging is delivered. For context on how point-of-care ultrasound is being integrated into medical education and clinical training, see this interview on POCUS as one of the most significant advances in bedside patient care.
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Response: Point-of-care ultrasound is one of the most significant advances in bedside patient care, and its use is expanding across nearly all fields of medicine. In order to best prepare medical students for residency and beyond, it is imperative to begin POCUS training as early as possible. At the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, we introduced POCUS education over a decade ago and have expanded it since then.
By providing each student with a Butterfly iQ device, we can augment our curriculum significantly. In addition to our robust pre-clinical sessions, now we will expand into the clinical years highlighting the utility of POCUS with actual patients.
This gift was made possible by the incredible generosity of Dr. Ronald Salvitti, MD ’63. 
Dr, Ferguson[/caption]
Michael Ferguson, PhD
Instructor in Neurology | Harvard Medical School
Lecturer on Neurospirituality | Harvard Divinity School
Center for Brain Circuit Therapeutics
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Over 80% of the global population consider themselves religious with even more identifying as spiritual, but the neural substrates of spirituality and religiosity remain unresolved.
MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings? Where is this circuit located in the brain? What other effects does this circuit control or influence?
Response: We found that brain lesions associated with self-reported spirituality map to a human brain circuit centered on the periaqueductal grey.
Dr. Spampinato[/caption]
Maria Vittoria Spampinato, MD
Neuroradiology Division Director
Department of Radiology and Radiological Science
Medical University of South Carolina
Charleston, SC 29425-3230
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) represents a major public health crisis worldwide. More than 5 million people currently have AD in the United States. AD is a slowly progressing neurodegenerative brain disorder with a long preclinical phase. Many people with AD first suffer from mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a decline in cognitive abilities like memory and thinking skills that is greater than that associated with normal aging. A person with MCI is at an increased risk of developing AD or another dementia, although some individuals with MCI remain cognitively stable or improve.
Anxiety is frequently observed in individuals with MCI. The reported prevalence of anxiety in MCI patients varies between 10 and 50%. In this study we evaluated a cohort of 339 individuals with MCI participating in the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative study (ADNI2). During the five years of study participation, 72 patients experienced cognitive decline and were diagnosed with AD. We did not find difference in age, gender and education among patients with and without AD conversion. Patients who progressed had greater atrophy of the hippocampi and entorhinal cortex on their MRI scan, as expected (hippocampal atrophy is often used as a marker of neurodegeneration in AD), as well as greater prevalence of APOE4 is the strongest known genetic risk factor for AD. Patients who progressed to Alzheimer’s disease also had greater severity of anxiety during the study, as measured using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Questionnaire. Next we determined the effect of the MRI findings (hippocampal and entorhinal cortex atrophy), of the genetic risk factor (APOE4) and of the severity of anxiety on the time to progression to AD. We found that higher levels of anxiety were associated with faster progression from MCI to AD, independently of whether they had a genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease or brain volume loss. We still need to understand better the association between anxiety disorders and cognitive decline. We do not know whether increased levels of anxiety are a consequence of cognitive decline or if anxiety exacerbates to cognitive decline. If we were able to find in the future that anxiety is actually contributing to cognitive decline, then we should more aggressively screen for anxiety disorders in the elderly population.