Self-Performed Lung Ultrasound for Home Monitoring of a Patient Positive for Coronavirus Disease 2019

Abstract

A subset of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and lung involvement pose a disposition challenge, particularly when hospital resources are constrained. Those not in respiratory failure are sent home, often with phone monitoring and/or respiratory rate and oxygen saturation monitoring. Hypoxemia may be a late presentation and is often preceded by abnormal lung findings on ultrasound. Early identification of pulmonary progression may preempt emergency hospitalization for respiratory decompensation and facilitate more timely admission. With the goal of safely isolating infected patients while providing advanced monitoring, we present a first report of patient self-performed lung ultrasound in the home with a hand-held device under the guidance of a physician using a novel teleguidance platform.

Keywords: coronavirus disease 2019; lung ultrasound; telemedicine.

Figure 1

The expert’s view of a teleguidance session with the lung image shown on the left and the two-way video features on the right. The expert can change modes, adjust depth and gain, and save clips. Directions can be given through augmented reality buttons and/or auditory feedback.