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Review
. 2023 Mar;26(1):1-12.
doi: 10.1007/s40477-022-00720-0. Epub 2022 Sep 12.

Clinical usefulness of transcutaneous laryngeal ultrasonography in otolaryngology practice during COVID-19 pandemic: a literature review

Pasqua Irene Sciancalepore  1 , Roberta Anzivino  2 , Paolo Petrone  3 , Domenico Petrone  2 , Nicola Quaranta  4
Affiliations
Review

Clinical usefulness of transcutaneous laryngeal ultrasonography in otolaryngology practice during COVID-19 pandemic: a literature review

Pasqua Irene Sciancalepore et al. J Ultrasound. 2023 Mar.

Abstract

As a consequence of the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2, the clinical practice of otolaryngologists underwent profound transformations. Non-aerosol-generating procedures have been researched and implemented. Transcutaneous laryngeal ultrasonography (TLUSG) provides a rapid and noninvasive method to assess laryngeal function and can support the management of laryngeal disorders. With the aim of investigating the clinical usefulness of TLUSG in otolaryngology practice, a review of the literature published on PubMed, Cochrane Library and Ovid/ Medline databases was performed up to March 2022. 38 studies were eligible to be included in the review. The selected papers were divided into six topics of interest: evaluation of vocal cords function, diagnosis of laryngeal disorders in infants and children, evaluation of swallowing disorders, assessment of laryngeal cancer and other laryngeal lesions, ultrasound-guided cricothyroidotomy, ultrasound-guided laryngeal electromyography. The results of this review demonstrated that TLUSG, applied to ENT practice, can be a valid method for dynamic laryngeal assessment and airway management, since it is time-efficient, non invasive, well tolerated and easily performed.

Keywords: COVID-19; ENT; Laryngeal ultrasonography; Otolaryngology; TLUSG; Transcutaneous laryngeal ultrasonography.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
PRISMA (primary reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses) flow diagram
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Topics of interest of included articles about clinical applications of transcutaneous laryngeal ultrasonography (TLUSG) in otolaryngology practice
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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