Point-of-care ultrasound use in umbilical line placement: a review

Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) has become a novel tool for assessing umbilical catheter tip location in the neonate. This review analyzes the current evidence on the efficacy and utility of POCUS for identifying umbilical catheter positioning. Medline, EMBASE, and Cochrane searches were performed until October 2018. Eight studies were identified comparing POCUS to x-ray in assessing umbilical catheter tip location in the last 10 years. POCUS was shown to be feasible and appears to be a superior imagining modality to x-rays in assessing umbilical line tip location. POCUS is more accurate in determining umbilical catheter positioning, allows for more rapid line umbilical catheter placement, and reduces the time to treatment as well as radiation exposure to the neonate when compared with x-ray. The available studies support further education in training neonatal providers to become proficient in POCUS for assessing umbilical lines.