A list of resources to start the ultrasound journey in pediatric care, specifically with a view to adult practitioners who are moving into peds
Slides from SSAI fellowship lecture
- Cannot currently be shared as case material is not cleared for open access
Learning ultrasound
Start with adults and work your way down. Most diagnostic tests and POCUS guided procedures translate almost 1:1, although there are additional ones not relevant or practical in adults.
It is usually easier to achieve good imaging on neonates and children than adults. Shorter distances equals shallower depth and thus higher frequency probes, allowing both better spatial and temporal resolution. Resources to get you started below both for procedures and diagnostics / targeted investigations.
Build a strong foundation in US: Do a solid online or in-person course
Regional anaesthesia resources
- Nysora
- USRA
- Sonosite youtube kanal (includes also other procedures and diagnostics)
Free Ibooks
- Introduction to bedside ultrasound, by Matt and Mike from the Ultrasound Podcast. Still a great introduction to adult POCUS
- Practical guide to critical ultrasound, amazing effort by Resa Lewiss et al,
Online FOAM outlets focused on POCUS
- Core ultrasound, took over where the now defunct, but hugely influential Ultrasound Podcast left off. Mostly adult, but great resource
- Sonographic tendencies
- The POCUS atlas, open access library with patient cases. Currently building out a paediatric section
- Texas Children’s Hospital: Pediatric Echocardiography. A really serious resource on everything in echochardiographic evaluation of congenital heart disease. Mostly for cardiologists
- Neonatal hemodynamics research group (youtube). Provides free lectures including foundational introductions to TnEcho (targeted neonatal echo) and neonatal physiology. Also active on twitter/X
- Neocardiolab, an educational site on all things neonatal POCUS byt Dr Gabriel Altit out of McGill. Up to date curated videos and consensus guidelines
- NICUPOCUS.com, a site with introductory material on TnEcho (targeted Echo) and POCUS guided procedures in neonates. Also on twitter/X. Led by Alan Groves, M.D., Ass Prof, Dep Peds, Dell Medical Center, Austin, Texas
- MPROvE academy, an neonatal educational intiative by Dr Alok Sharma et al. Most value seems to be a rather broad coverage of neonatal topics including diagnostics, procedures and POCUS topics on their youtube channel
Apps on paediatric echocardiography and congenital heart defects
- Ped Echo (seems down outside US)
- Tn Echo 2 (also seems down)
- NeoCardioLab, seems like a wrapper for the website itself, mentioned above, which is probably the better place to go when possible as the app is not super mobile friendly
- Heartpedia, out of Cincinatti Children’s. Offers information on and visualisation of a host of congenital heart malformations including their repair. Also has a youtube channel
Key articles
- International evidence-based guidelines on Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) for critically ill neonates and children issued by the POCUS Working Group of the European Society of Paediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care (ESPNIC)
- Guidelines and Recommendations for Targeted Neonatal Echocardiography and Cardiac Point-of-Care Ultrasound in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: An Update from the American Society of Echocardiography
- Recommendations for Cardiac Point-of-Care Ultrasound in Children: A Report from the American Society of Echocardiography
- Point-of-care ultrasound in pediatric anesthesia: perioperative considerations, Adler et al, curr opin anaes 2020
- Long-term IV access in paediatrics – why, what, where, who and how, Johansen et al, Acta 2020. Get your inline US guided brachiocephalic central line game on
Know a better one?
The field of POCUS is perpetually in motion, both with regards to the science and clinical practice, but also online educational material. This is merely meant as a starting point. Let us know if stuff has gone stale or you have even better or additional suggestions below.
Scandinavian paediatric anaesthetist / intensivist.
PHARM, ED, OR, ICU.
Digital MedEd
Co-founder scanFOAM.org
Co-organiser CphCC & TBS-Zermatt (aka The Big Sick)
Medical lead REPEL (resilience in pediatric emergency life support)
Web dev SSAI.info
