Perioperative medicine & outcomes
Clinical accuracy and reliability of point-of-care ultrasound for perioperative diaphragmatic assessment: a scoping review
Authors' conclusion
Perioperative diaphragmatic ultrasound shows acceptable reliability and agreement with reference standards. Heterogeneity in techniques and outcomes limits comparability.
Study context
- Population
- Adult or paediatric surgical patients undergoing perioperative diaphragmatic ultrasound
- Participants
- 712 participants · 19 studies
- Comparison
- Perioperative diaphragmatic POCUS vs reference standards
- Outcome
- Reliability, reproducibility and agreement with reference standards of perioperative diaphragmatic POCUS
Methodological detailsJoanna Briggs Institute methodology, PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews, protocol registered on the Open Science Framework
- Joanna Briggs Institute methodology
- PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews
- Protocol registered on the Open Science Framework
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
- Adults: generally positive, although variable, correlations with spirometry, transdiaphragmatic pressure, electrophysiological measures, neuromuscular recovery and arterial blood gas-based weaning criteria
- Thresholds for excursion and thickening varied across studies
- Inter- and intra-observer agreement generally good to excellent, including among operators with limited training
- Paediatrics: high diagnostic accuracy and strong agreement with fluoroscopy, with excellent interobserver reliability
- Most studies prospective observational, published after 2015
Original publication
Clinical accuracy and reliability of point-of-care ultrasound for perioperative diaphragmatic assessment: a scoping review. Br J Anaesth. Published 22 September 2026. doi:10.
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