Dyspnea in pregnancy. Can POCUS be the game changer?

Ghiringhellia, Juan; Arzola, Cristian; Zasso, Fabricio

Publication:
Dyspnea in pregnancy. Can POCUS be the game changer?

dc.contributor.author	Ghiringhellia, Juan
dc.contributor.author	Arzola, Cristian
dc.contributor.author	Zasso, Fabricio
dc.date.accessioned	2026-07-23T20:36:12Z
dc.date.available	2026-07-23T20:36:12Z
dc.date.issued	2025
dc.description.abstract	Dyspnea is a common symptom during pregnancy, but it can present a diagnostic challenge. While it may often be attributed to physiological changes it may also signal serious underlying conditions such as asthma crisis, infection, pulmonary edema (PEd), pulmonary embolism, and amniotic fluid embolism. Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is a swift and effective bedside modality for assessing acute or critical medical conditions. It can be used as an alternative or alongside traditional formal ultrasound conducted by a radiology-cardiology service. This review explores the role of POCUS in the parturient experiencing shortness of breath, highlighting the potential value of maternal cardiopulmonary POCUS in obstetric anesthesia, facilitating timely treatment and providing immediate differential diagnosis in potentially unstable patients. As an example, a case is discussed involving a sudden onset of PEd and loss of consciousness in a 48-year-old patient who underwent a category-1 cesarean section under general anesthesia. POCUS identified severely decreased global systolic function and confirmed pulmonary edema through the presence of B-Kerley lines, providing a swift guidance for intraoperative inotropic support and fluid management while excluding other causes of pathological dyspnea in pregnancy.
dc.description.version	Versión Aceptada
dc.identifier.citation	Ghiringhelli, Juan Pablo, Arzola, Cristian, & Zasso, Fabricio. (2025). Dyspnea in pregnancy. Can POCUS be the game changer?. Colombian Journal of Anestesiology, 53(4), e1169. Epub September 25, 2025.https://doi.org/10.5554/22562087.e1169
dc.identifier.doi	https://doi.org/10.5554/22562087.e1169
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/11447/10907
dc.language.iso	en
dc.subject	Obstetric anesthesia
dc.subject	Dyspnea
dc.subject	High-risk pregnancy
dc.subject	Peripartum cardiomyopathy
dc.subject	Point of care systems
dc.subject	POCUS
dc.title	Dyspnea in pregnancy. Can POCUS be the game changer?
dc.title.alternative	Disnea en el embarazo. ¿Puede el POCUS cambiar el paradigma/enfoque diagnóstico?
dc.type	Article
dcterms.accessRights	Acceso Abierto
dcterms.source	Colombian Journal of Anestesiology
dspace.entity.type	Publication