Uses for Point of Care Ultrasounds

 After earning his MD from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Dr. Jason Jaramillo joined Maimonides Medical Center. Now with Weiner and Gallo as a physician focusing on thoracic health, Jason Jaramillo, MD, is also currently pursuing a certification for point of care ultrasound (POCUS) to facilitate more prompt diagnostic care.

POCUS utilizes a portable ultrasound machine to diagnose specific medical problems. Rather than hauling an ultrasound cart throughout a hospital and relying on ultrasound-specific technicians, a surgeon, emergency room nurse, or other specialist can use the smaller POCUS, even hooking it up to a laptop. The procedure is the same as with traditional ultrasound machines - the physician coats the relevant body area with a conductive gel and touches that area with the handheld transducer, sometimes applying slight pressure. The transducer’s sound waves bounce off the patient’s internal structures, leading to the creation of a visual representation of the area being examined. The practitioner can then use the images to diagnose the patient without using a larger device.

POCUS is extremely useful because it can diagnose patients even in settings without the sterilization practices of hospitals, like ambulances or areas far from traditional healthcare settings. Some models even allow for hands-free operation, in locations with increased risk of contamination. Issues a POCUS can diagnose quickly include acute problems like internal bleeding or blood clots, shortening the time between diagnosis and surgery or other treatment.

Point-Of-Care Ultrasound Systems Projected to Grow Exponentially

 An experienced general physician in Brooklyn, New York, Jason Jaramillo, MD, operates a private practice tied to the top-ranked Maimonides Medical Center in Borough Park. He earned his MD from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine after graduating with a BS in chemistry and BA in Spanish from Hillsdale College in Michigan. Staying current with new diagnostic technologies, Dr. Jason Jaramillo counts point-of-care ultrasound among his areas of clinical interest.

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is part of a bigger point-of-care (POC) movement that has permeated all corners of the healthcare industry. Like all POC fields, POCUS strives to place as many medical and administrative activities as possible at the specific site of patient care, generally providing bedside diagnostics using handheld ultrasound devices.

According to an independent economic research report by Data Bridge Market Research, the POCUS market will likely undergo an exponential growth rate of 6.54 percent through 2028. The report specifically points to a global increase in emergency room patient admissions and a deepening need to boost functional efficiency as major factors in this growth. To address these issues, organizations are increasingly embracing POCUS as a way to streamline healthcare processes while reducing operational spending.

How Focused Ultrasound Targets Regions Deep in the Body

 Based in New York City, Jason Jaramillo, MD, practices at the Maimonides Medical Center and provides community focused care. In his work as an MD, Dr. Jason Jaramillo delivers diagnostic point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS).

Not limited to diagnostics, the uses of ultrasound include the emerging field of focused ultrasound (FUS), which is guided by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Employing a wide range of FUS intensities, this approach preserves nearby organs while having neuroelectric, mechanical, and thermal effects on the targeted tissues. Among US-approved FUS treatments are those for osteoid osteoma, bone metastases, and Parkinson’s disease-related tremors.

One way of conceptualizing FUS is that it’s like employing a magnifying glass in focusing beams of light on a point and burning a hole in paper. Rather than an optical lens, an acoustic lens focuses several ultrasound energy beams in accurately targeting a point deep within the body. Interesting, each individual beam has the same limited power of diagnostic ultrasound, until they are targeted at a focal convergence point.

POCUS Reduces Exposure to Ionizing Radiation

 Brooklyn, New York doctor Jason Jaramillo, MD treats patients at the private community healthcare center Medical Allied Associates. With an MD from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Dr. Jason Jaramillo has professional interests that include point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS), an emerging technology that allows physicians to perform an ultrasound exam from any location.

POCUS is a portable device that can be used with a smartphone or tablet to capture high-resolution, real-time images that can be viewed in minutes. More importantly, it allows physicians to ask specific questions to make diagnoses or rule out conditions.

A safety benefit of this technology is that there is no exposure to ionizing radiation, unlike traditional ultrasounds or x-rays. Ionizing radiation is energy that removes electrons from atoms/molecules found in the air, water, and living tissue.

It occurs naturally (in low levels) and is man-made, and in high amounts, it has harmful effects on the body after being absorbed. Exposure to ionizing radiation in high amounts leads to cells dying because of the damage to DNA. Prolonged exposure might lead to skin burns, cancer, or cardiovascular conditions.