Lung ultrasound versus chest radiography for diagnosing pneumonia: A mini systematic review

Background: Pneumonia is a deadly disease which needs fast and correct examination and therapy. Some studies suggest that lung ultrasound could be useful and fast examination for diagnosing pneumonia. Furthermore, it has more favorable safety profile and lower cost than chest X-ray (CXR) and Computed Tomography (CT).

Objective: The aim of this study is to know accuracy of lung ultrasound versus chest radiography for diagnosing pneumonia and whether it can replace chest radiography as routine examination.

Methods: We made structured research on several databases including Science direct, Proquest, Pubmed, and EBSCO Host. The selected studies underwent critical appraisal based on Oxford CEEBM diagnostic study clinical appraisal.

Results: Six diagnostic studies comprising of 752 participants met inclusion criteria were critically appraised. Sensitivity of lung ultrasound in pneumonia is better than chest radiography (68%-98.5% vs. 47%-77.7%). Specificity of lung ultrasound is better than chest radiography in pneumonia (57%-98.5% vs. 59.5%-94%). All of studies showed lung ultrasound is better and statistically significant.

Conclusions: Our study indicates that lung ultrasound is better than chest radiography for diagnosing pneumonia and can become routine examination. It may represent a useful first-line approach for confirmation of clinical diagnosis.