I take a more radical approach - most of the scans I do are with the neck
open and the scanhead in a sterile sheath!

Robert B. Patterson, MD
Vascular Surgery
Brown University
401-793-4530

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> ----------
> From:         Lee Nix[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Reply To:     UVM Flownet
> Sent:         Monday, September 13, 1999 15:11
> To:   [log in to unmask]
> Subject:      Re: Scanning positions
>
> Guess that means I'm on the B team.
> M. Lee Nix, BSN,RN,RVT
> Director, Vascular Lab
> Instructor, Department of Surgery
> University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
> (501)   686-5318
> FAX   (501)   686-8688
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
>         -----Original Message-----
>         From:   Rob Daigle [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
>         Sent:   Monday, September 13, 1999 11:19 AM
>         To:     [log in to unmask]
>         Subject:        Re: Scanning positions
>
>         Don, scanning from the side of the patient is being taught in some
>         ultrasound schools, and I think it's a mistake. The key
> ingredients
> to a
>         successful technical carotid scan include the ability to hold a 1
> or
> 2 mm
>         Doppler sample volume in a 1mm or 1/2 mm residual lumen and keep
> it
>         there.  Anyone can do normal carotids, but it's the tough ones
> that
>         require a very steady hand/arm and very subtle transducer
> movement.
> One's
>         arm cannot be resting on the patients chest. Additionally, the
> ability to
>         scan from a posterior -lateral position is essential. These two
> critical
>         ingredients are difficult  when positioned at the patients side.
> I've met
>         a lot of people who scan carotids and all of the people that I
> consider
>         to be the "A team" scan from in front of the head, and it's for a
> good
>         reason.  If you want to achieve the best quality exam, you can't
> cut
>          corners on technique. My apologies for preaching to the choir,
> but
> I'm
>         concerned about what I consider to be an erosion of carotid
> scanning
>         accuracy.
>         Rob Daigle
>
>          -----Original Message-----
>         From: Don Ridgway [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
>         Sent: Sunday, September 12, 1999 8:24 PM
>         To: Robd; UVMFLOWNET
>         Subject: Scanning positions
>
>
>         This isn't what you'd call Earth-shaking, but there's a bit of a
> bet:
>
>         What position are people taking relative to the patient when
> scanning
>         carotids? I'm still of the old school, sitting behind the
> patient's
> head.
>         Another tech tells me nobody scans like that any more; he stands
> at
> the
>         patient's side, facing the patient, much as one would doing an
> abdominal
>         scan but a bit farther toward the head.
>
>         Could I ask for a bit of a survey? There's a lunch riding on this.
> You
>         can
>         reply straight to me so as not to clutter the Flownet up severely:
>
>         [log in to unmask]
>
>         Thanks a ton.
>
>         Don Ridgway
>         Grossmont Hospital
>         Grossmont College
>