Cardiopulmonary Point-of-Care Ultrasonography for Hospitalist Management of Undifferentiated Dyspnea

Is cardiopulmonary point-of-care ultrasonography (POCUS) associated with reduced hospital length of stay (LOS) and hospitalization costs in patients with undifferentiated dyspnea?In this quality improvement study involving 208 patients with undifferentiated dyspnea, POCUS, compared with standard care, was associated with a reduction of 246 hospital bed–days and direct cost savings of $751 537, with an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $3055 per bed-day saved. However, despite training, only 20% of hospitalists used POCUS independently.These findings suggest that cardiopulmonary POCUS has substantial potential to enhance hospital efficiency by reducing LOS and costs, and future studies should address adoption barriers with tailored education and support to ensure consistent integration.

Corresponding Author: Partho P. Sengupta, MD, DM, Division of Cardiovascular Diseases and Hypertension, Department of Medicine, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, 125 Patterson St, New Brunswick, NJ 08901 (partho.sengupta@rutgers.edu).

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