Abstract
Peripheral nerve ultrasound (US) is a tool complementary to clinical and electromyographic examinations. Neurophysiology provides functional data about nerves, while US supplies morphological information. In the last decades, nerve US is increasingly becoming a routine technique in neurophysiology labs for the information that can add usefulness of nerve US for diagnosis and therapeutic approach.
In the past, US systems were used in submarines for object detection, during the World War, and they were known as SONAR. After the war, the same technology was used in medical practice as treatment tool, based on heat production by ultrasound with beneficial effects upon tissues. Today this application of US is still used in physical medicine and rehabilitation.
The diagnostic use of US began during the 1940s. Development of technology, in the next 20 years, provided high-resolution images useful for diagnosis, like detection of obstetric disorders and gestation management. Today US is widely employed in gastroenterology, urology, surgery, cardiology, and neurology, especially carotid and transcranial Doppler imaging. Application to peripheral nervous system was less common and often overlooked.
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Padua, L., Coraci, D. (2016). Peripheral Nerve Ultrasound. In: Angelini, C. (eds) Acquired Neuromuscular Disorders. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-29514-5_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-29514-5_4
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