Diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography for the confirmation of endotracheal tube intubation: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Aim: Despite several studies and reviews reporting data accuracy of ultrasonography for confirmation of endotracheal intubation, there has been limited pooled evidence summarizing the diagnostic accuracy of this imaging modality, especially based on recent evidence. Hence, the current study reviews the recent literature and conducts a meta-analysis to compare the accuracy of ultrasonography for the confirmation of endotracheal tube placement.Material and methods: We conducted a systematic search for all studies reporting the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography in the databases of Medline, EMBASE, PubMed Central, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar & Cochrane library from inception till December 2021. Meta-analysis was performed using STATA software "midas" package.Results: Thirty-eight studies with 3,268 participants were included. The pooled sensitivity was 98% (95% CI, 97%-99%) and specificity was 95% (95% CI, 90%-98%), respectively. The AUC was 0.98 (95%CI: 0.96-1.00). The pooled DOR was 1090 (95% CI, 408-2910). Pooled LRP was 19 (95% CI, 9-39) and pooled LRN was 0.02 (0.01-0.03). There was significant heterogeneity found in the outcome with significant chi-square tests and I2 statistics > 75%. Conclusion: Findings from our review demonstrate promise in the applicability of ultrasonography as a major diagnostic tool for confirming the endotracheal tube intubation.