The goal of the study was to test whether a sonographic examination instead of an X-ray allows the position of a tube in the stomach to be checked. Participants were patients admitted at an intensive care unit who required a nasogastric tube for several reasons (for example nutrition). After obtaining an informed consent from the patient or the family, the researchers checked the position of the tube with ultrasound and compared it with the gold standard, which is radiography. Data analysis allowed the concordance between the two tests to be analyzed.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NA
Purpose
DIAGNOSTIC
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
182
The sonographic examination consisted of three parts: neck scan, epigastric scan, and injection test using a mixture of 25 mL NaCl 0.9% and 25 mL room air through the nasogastric tube to detect dynamic fogging
Medicina Intensiva, Ente ospedaliero cantonale
Bellinzona, Switzerland
Diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography in determining correct nasogastric tube placement in the stomach
In order to assess its diagnostic accuracy (sensitivity, specificity, negative predictive value, positive predictive value) we compared the index test (ultrasonography) against the reference standard (X-ray)
Time frame: Through study completion (enrollment of approximately 180 patients)
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