Lung Ultrasound in Pleuritic Chest Pain

Chest pain is an alarming symptom and one of the most frequent causes of access to the Emergency Departement. Although chest X-ray remains an essential step in the diagnostic process, several studies showed numerous limitations of radiography which frequently is inconclusive. Ultrasonography is a non-radiating imaging technique. Albeit a wide use of ultrasound, the utilization of ultrasound in the study of the lung has only recently been introduced in the clinical practice. Several studies proved that lung ultrasound is useful in the diagnosis of lung consolidation in community acquired pneumonia. Nowadays, ultrasound is not routinely used in the presence of chest pain. Our hypothesis based on clinical experience is that, in patients with pleuritic chest pain, lung ultrasound is very sensitive in detecting pneumonia and other lung diseases (such as pneumothorax) thus performing better than radiography. The primary aim of this study is to verify, in patients affected by pleuritic chest pain, the accuracy of lung ultrasound compared to chest-X-ray. The secondary aim is to evaluate the accuracy of lung ultrasound consolidations in distinguishing lung consolidation in pneumonia, atelectasis, pulmonary infarction, or tumors.

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Key information

Conditions

Community Acquired Pneumonia Cardiovascular Diseases Community-Acquired Infections Community-Acquired Pneumonia Embolism Embolism and Thrombosis Infections Lung Cancer Lung Diseases Lung Neoplasms Neoplasms Neoplasms by Site Pleural Diseases Pleurisy Pleuritis Pneumonia Pulmonary Embolism Respiratory Tract Diseases Respiratory Tract Infections Respiratory Tract Neoplasms Thoracic Neoplasms Vascular Diseases

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Observational

Primary location

Emergency Department, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Careggi, Firenze., Florence, Italy

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

patient aged 18 years and older
patient affected by thoracic pleuritic pain

Exclusion criteria

patient affected by a chronic condition causing thoracic pain
patient affected by acute cardiovascular diseases (e.g. acute coronary syndrome)

Treatment and study plan

Lung ultrasound

Procedure

Lung ultrasonography performed and interpreted by a physician (Pulmonologist or Emergency Physician) possessing specific knowledge in the procedure and a training of at least 100 thoracic ultrasonographies in accordance to a prespecified protocol.

Other names: Lung sonography

Primary outcomes

Sensitivity and specificity of lung ultrasound in pneumonia, chest wall pain, lung cancer, pulmonary embolism or other causes in patients presenting with pleuritic chest pain.

Time frame: 30 days

Sensitivity and specificity, positive and negative predictive values of lung ultrasound in pneumonia, chest wall pain, lung cancer, pulmonary embolism or other causes in patients presenting with pleuritic chest pain.

Secondary outcomes

Accuracy of ultrasound in distinguishing lung consolidation in pneumonia, atelectasis, pulmonary infarction or tumors

Time frame: 30 days

Accuracy of ultrasound in differentiating consolidation in distinguishing lung consolidation in pneumonia, atelectasis, pulmonary infarction, tumors or other diseases with respect to the final diagnosis stated by a scientific committee.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of Milan

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Lung Ultrasound in Pleuritic Chest Pain: a Multicenter, Prospective, Diagnostic Accuracy Study.

Acronym: UPP

Important dates

Study start: 2014
Primary completion: 2015
Study completion: 2015
First posted: Apr 8, 2014
Registry last updated: Dec 2, 2015

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

Published trials that share one or more normalized conditions with this study.

Completed