Research conducted by the Scripps Translational Science Institute and Scripps Health has proved that General Electric's Vscan pocket ultrasound device, used for point-of-care assessment of heart health, can reduce costs and improve the quality of care.
The device, the size of a smart phone, allows doctors to look at a patient's heart during a routine physical exam.
The study evaluated the hearts of 97 patients using Vscan and showed accurate assessments of ejection fraction and other measures for assessing heart health in patients.
Scripps Clinic cardiologist Eric Topol said pocket echos used during physical examinations could reduce the number of unnecessary echocardiograms, particularly when used by a clinician trained in obtaining and interpreting the images.
The study was funded through the National Institutes of Health's flagship Clinical and Translational Science award grant.
