Screening for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm and Abdominal Aortic Atherosclerosis by Hand-Held Ultrasonography (ECO-AAA)

Screening for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm and Abdominal Aortic Atherosclerosis by Hand-Held Ultrasonography

Feasibility of Hand-Held-Ultrasonography in Primary Care in the Screening of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm and Abdominal Aortic Atheromatosis.

The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) and abdominal aortic atheromatosis (AA-At) using a hand-held ultrasound by a general practitioner in Primary Health Care.

Pilot study that prospectively study a cohort of men over 50 years with cardiovascular risk factors: active smokers, former smokers, or hypertensive patients, attended in primary health care center. General Practitioner complete an ultrasonography training in an Ultrasound Unit under supervision of experienced radiologists using an standard ultrasound equipment and hand-held ultrasound (Trademark: VScan®, Manufacturer: General Electric, USA). All images and video recorded are blindly evaluated by a radiologist in order to establish the concordance in the interpretation of images between general practitioner and radiologist. Kappa index is calculated to study the agreement on the presence or absence of AAA and AA-At. Logistic regression analysis is used to determine the factors that influence the presence of AA-At

Hand-Held ultrasonography, Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal Aortic Atherosclerosis, Cardiovascular risk, Primary Health Care

Standardized measurements were made and aorta was tried to be visualized in its entirety, and a minimum of three hard copy images were obtained: upper transverse subxiphoid section, lower transverse section for distal view of aorta, and longitudinal section (with origin of celiac trunk or superior mesenteric artery), determining the maximum diameter in centimeters (cm).

Standardized measurements were made and aorta was tried to be visualized in its entirety, and a minimum of three hard copy images were obtained: upper transverse subxiphoid section, lower transverse section for distal view of aorta, and longitudinal section (with origin of celiac trunk or superior mesenteric artery), determining the maximum diameter in centimeters (cm).

Number of patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm detected by a Hand-held ultrasound in Primary Care.

Number of patients with abdominal aortic atheromatosis detected by Hand-held ultrasound in Primary Care