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Review
. 2017 Aug 19;3(3):99-104.
doi: 10.1515/jccm-2017-0021. eCollection 2017 Jul.

Use of Transcranial Doppler in Intensive Care Unit

Sandor Viski  1 , Laszlo Olah  2
Affiliations
Review

Use of Transcranial Doppler in Intensive Care Unit

Sandor Viski et al. J Crit Care Med (Targu Mures). .

Abstract

Use of transcranial Doppler has undergone much development since its introduction in 1982, making the technique suitable for general use in intensive care units. The main application in intensive care units is to assess intracranial pressure, confirm the lack of cerebral circulation in brain death, detect vasospasm in subarachnoid haemorrhage, and monitor the blood flow parameters during thrombolysis and carotid endarterectomy, as well as measuring stenosis of the main intracranial arteries in sickle cell disease in children. This review summarises the use of transcranial Doppler in intensive care units.

Keywords: brain death; endarterectomy; intensive care unit; intracranial pressure; optic nerve sheath diameter; sickle cell disease; subarachnoid haemorrhage; thrombolysis; transcranial Doppler; vasospasm.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: None to declare.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The subarachnoid space surrounds the optic nerve and is bounded by the optic nerve sheath that is an anatomical extension of the dura mater around the nerve. In case of increased intracranial pressure (ICP), the optic nerve sheath is dilated due to the elevated cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Systolic spikes detected in the right MCA in brain death.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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