Risk-based ultrasound probe quality assurance - a single center proof-of-concept study.

Abstract

Ultrasound probe quality assurance is an underserved and underregulated area in medical imaging. While several testing methods exist, their availability and adoption remains varied, and the frequency of testing is often insufficient. Here we aimed to conduct a user-driven simple and rapid probe quality testing approach and to evaluate its rationale.Testing was based on physical examination of probe integrity (all probes) and in-air reverberation check (for curvilinear and linear array probes), findings, as well as probe age were registered. Prior to assessment, probes were divided into a high-risk vs. a low-risk category, based on the perceived risk of probe damage as a result of the typical application (e.g., non-invasive vs. interventional, inpatient vs. point-of-care).17.4% of the low-risk and 31.4% of high-risk probes demonstrated physical wear or damage. Reverberation artifacts were significantly more frequent (68%) in the high-risk category vs. the low-risk one (29.4%). Probes with either physical or reverberation faults were significantly older on average.The simple, rapid investigational technique uncovered an alarming percentage of probe damage or faults. It also identified immediately solvable technical issues (e.g., poor cable contact mimicking dropout). High-risk probe usage resulted in an increased rate of reverberation errors and physical damage. Risk-based, frequent rapid observational testing of ultrasound probes could substantially improve both diagnostic quality and patient safety.