Despite the growing use of point of care ultrasound (POCUS) in contemporary medical practice and the existence of clinical guidelines addressing its specific applications, there remains a lack of standardization and agreement on optimal practices for several areas of POCUS use. The Society of Point of Care Ultrasound (SPOCUS) formed a working group in 2022 to establish a set of recommended best practices for POCUS, applicable to clinicians regardless of their training, specialty, resource setting, or scope of practice. Using a three-round modified Delphi process, a multi-disciplinary panel of 22 POCUS experts based in the United States reached consensus on 57 statements in domains including: (1) The definition and clinical role of POCUS; (2) Training pathways; (3) Credentialing; (4) Cleaning and maintenance of POCUS devices; (5) Consent and education; (6) Security, storage, and sharing of POCUS studies; (7) Uploading, archiving, and reviewing POCUS studies; and (8) Documenting POCUS studies. The consensus statements are provided here. While not intended to establish a standard of care or supersede more targeted guidelines, this document may serve as a useful baseline to guide clinicians, leaders, and systems considering initiation or enhancement of POCUS programs.

Point-of-care sonography is a precondition in acute and emergency medicine for the diagnosis and initiation of therapy for critically ill and injured patients. While emergency sonography is a mandatory part of the training for clinical acute and emergency medicine, it is not everywhere required for prehospital emergency medicine. Although some medical societies in Germany have already established their own learning concepts for emergency ultrasound, a uniform national training concept for the use of emergency sonography in the out-of-hospital setting is still lacking. Experts of several professional medical societies have therefore joined forces and developed a structured training concept for emergency sonography in the prehospital setting. The consensus paper serves as quality assurance in prehospital emergency sonography.
UNASSIGNED: Die Point-of-Care-Sonografie ist in der Akut- und Notfallmedizin ein fester Bestandteil der Diagnostik und Therapieeinleitung von kritisch kranken und verletzten Patienten. Während die Notfallsonografie im Rahmen der Zusatzweiterbildung für klinische Akut- und Notfallmedizin vorausgesetzt wird, wird diese für die prähospitale Notfallmedizin lediglich im (Muster‑)Kursbuch Allgemeine und spezielle Notfallbehandlung als Weiterbildungsinhalt definiert. Obwohl einige Fachgesellschaften in Deutschland bereits eigene Lernkonzepte für die Notfallsonografie etabliert haben, fehlt bis dato ein einheitliches nationales Ausbildungskonzept für den Einsatz der Notfallsonografie im prähospitalem Umfeld. Experten mehrerer Fachgesellschaften haben daher als Empfehlung für die notfallmedizinische Weiterbildung ein Kurskonzept für die spezielle Ausbildung in der prähospitalen Notfallsonografie erarbeitet, welche gleichermaßen zu deren Qualitätssicherung beitragen soll.

Point-of-care sonography is a precondition in acute and emergency medicine for the diagnosis and initiation of therapy for critically ill and injured patients. While emergency sonography is a mandatory part of the training for clinical acute and emergency medicine, it is not everywhere required for prehospital emergency medicine. Although some medical societies in Germany have already established their own learning concepts for emergency ultrasound, a uniform national training concept for the use of emergency sonography in the out-of-hospital setting is still lacking. Experts of several professional medical societies have therefore joined forces and developed a structured training concept for emergency sonography in the prehospital setting. The consensus paper serves as quality assurance in prehospital emergency sonography.
Die Point-of-Care-Sonografie ist in der Akut- und Notfallmedizin ein fester Bestandteil der Diagnostik und Therapieeinleitung von kritisch kranken und verletzten Patienten. Während die Notfallsonografie im Rahmen der Zusatzweiterbildung für klinische Akut- und Notfallmedizin vorausgesetzt wird, wird diese für die prähospitale Notfallmedizin lediglich im (Muster‑)Kursbuch Allgemeine und spezielle Notfallbehandlung als Weiterbildungsinhalt definiert. Obwohl einige Fachgesellschaften in Deutschland bereits eigene Lernkonzepte für die Notfallsonografie etabliert haben, fehlt bis dato ein einheitliches nationales Ausbildungskonzept für den Einsatz der Notfallsonografie im prähospitalem Umfeld. Experten mehrerer Fachgesellschaften haben daher als Empfehlung für die notfallmedizinische Weiterbildung ein Kurskonzept für die spezielle Ausbildung in der prähospitalen Notfallsonografie erarbeitet, welche gleichermaßen zu deren Qualitätssicherung beitragen soll.

To describe the current evidence-based diagnosis and management of adenomyosis.
All patients with a uterus of reproductive age.
Diagnostic options include transvaginal sonography and magnetic resonance imaging. Treatment options should be tailored to symptoms (heavy menstrual bleeding, pain, and/or infertility) and include medical options (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, tranexamic acid, combined oral contraceptives, levonorgestrel intrauterine system, dienogest, other progestins, gonadotropin-releasing analogues), interventional options (uterine artery embolization), and surgical options (endometrial ablation, excision of adenomyosis, hysterectomy).
Outcomes of interest include reduction in heavy menstrual bleeding, reduction in pelvic pain (dysmenorrhea, dyspareunia, chronic pelvic pain), and improvement in reproductive outcomes (fertility, miscarriage, adverse pregnancy outcomes).
This guideline will benefit patients with gynaecological complaints that may be caused by adenomyosis, especially those patients who wish to preserve their fertility, by presenting diagnostic methods and management options. It will also benefit practitioners by improving their knowledge of various options.
Databases searched were MEDLINE Reviews, MEDLINE ALL, Cochrane, PubMed, EMBASE. The initial search was completed in 2021 and updated with relevant articles in 2022. Search terms included adenomyosis, adenomyoses, endometritis (used/indexed as adenomyosis before 2012), (endometrium AND myometrium) uterine adenomyosis/es, symptom/s/matic adenomyosis] AND [diagnosis, symptoms, treatment, guideline, outcome, management, imaging, sonography, pathogenesis, fertility, infertility, therapy, histology, ultrasound, review, meta-analysis, evaluation]. Articles included randomized controlled trials, meta-analyses, systematic reviews, observational studies, and case reports. Articles in all languages were searched and reviewed.
The authors rated the quality of evidence and strength of recommendations using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. See online Appendix A (Table A1 for definitions and Table A2 for interpretations of strong and conditional [weak] recommendations).
Obstetrician-gynaecologists, radiologists, family physicians, emergency physicians, midwives, registered nurses, nurse practitioners, medical students, residents, and fellows.
Adenomyosis is common in reproductive-aged women. There are diagnostic and management options that preserve fertility available.
RECOMMENDATIONS.

UNASSIGNED: Many guidelines have been utilised to diagnose polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). The most recent are the International Evidence Based Guideline for the Assessment and Management of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome 2018 (2018 IEBG). This study aimed to assess the awareness, knowledge, and attitudes of Australasian sonographers\' regarding these guidelines.
UNASSIGNED: An online cross-sectional survey was disseminated to sonographers. Qualitative and quantitative questions were asked around awareness, knowledge, and attitudes towards the 2018 IEBG. Statistical and thematic analyses of the results were performed.
UNASSIGNED: Ninety responses were included in the final analysis. Fifty-two percent (52.2%) of participants were aware of the 2018 IEBG but only 31.1% used it in their workplaces. Fifty-eight percent (57.9%) of participants correctly identified the sonographic features that suggest PCOS, and 3.5% correctly identified all minimum recommended inclusions for reporting a gynaecological ultrasound for PCOS. Prior to being supplied the 2018 IEBG, 15.8% of participants correctly answered clinical scenario-based knowledge questions, which increased to 29.4% correctly after being supplied the guideline; however, this difference was not statistically significant. There were no statistically significant associations between demographics and knowledge of the 2018 IEBG.
UNASSIGNED: Several areas of confusion surrounding wording and interpretation of the 2018 IEBG were highlighted. Consideration should be given to barriers of implementation and strategies to overcome these.
UNASSIGNED: More education surrounding the sonographic diagnosis of PCOS and the 2018 IEBG is needed. Scanning protocols used amongst sonographers varied, suggesting that inconsistency in sonographic diagnosis may exist. Future reviews of the 2018 IEBG should focus on reducing ambiguity in wording, which may be responsible for some of the varied interpretation of these guidelines.

Neuromuscular ultrasound is a rapidly evolving specialty with direct application for patient care. Competency assessment is an essential standard needed to ensure quality for practitioners, particularly for those newly acquiring skills with the technique. Our aim was to survey experts\' opinions regarding physician competency assessment of neuromuscular ultrasound and to identify minimal competency of knowledge and skills. The opinions of 18 experts were obtained through the Delphi method using two consecutive electronic surveys. A high degree of consensus was achieved on items regarding framework and the conduct of neuromuscular ultrasound assessment and the knowledge and skills that a candidate needs to attain minimal competency in neuromuscular ultrasound. In this study, a group of neuromuscular ultrasound experts developed a general framework for neuromuscular ultrasound competency assessment and recommended testable areas of knowledge and skills suitable for establishing minimal competency.

OBJECTIVE. The objective of our study was to assess the malignancy rates of thyroid nodules in the cytologically determined subclass of atypia of undetermined significance or follicular lesion of undetermined significance (AUS/FLUS) and to assess the diagnostic performance of ultrasound (US) patterns defined by the Korean Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System (K-TIRADS) and the 2015 American Thyroid Association (ATA) guidelines for risk stratification of AUS/FLUS nodules. MATERIALS AND METHODS. From January 2010 to December 2016, 1340 thyroid nodules were diagnosed as AUS/FLUS via fine-needle aspiration biopsy. Of these, 683 cytopathologically confirmed nodules were included in this study. Each nodule was assigned to a category and US pattern, as defined by the K-TIRADS and ATA guidelines. US patterns were compared between benign and malignant nodules, and malignancy rates were calculated according to the subclasses of AUS/FLUS nodules and the K-TIRADS and ATA guidelines. Predictors of malignancy were assessed using logistic regression analysis. RESULTS. The overall malignancy rate of AUS/FLUS nodules was 47.4% (324/683). There were significant differences in malignancy risk among the subclasses (p = 0.001). There were significant differences in malignancy rates according to US patterns, K-TIRADS categories, and ATA categories (p < 0.001). The malignancy rates in the K-TIRADS categories of benign, low, intermediate, and high suspicion were 0%, 1.99%, 34.66%, and 89.00%, respectively (p < 0.001). The malignancy rates in the ATA categories of benign, very low, low, intermediate, and high suspicion were 0%, 0%, 3.33%, 33.54%, and 87.67% (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION. AUS/FLUS nodules with a final diagnosis of malignancy had significantly higher rates of suspicious US features and different K-TIRADS and ATA categories than benign nodules. US categories by K-TIRADS and ATA guidelines can be useful in predicting malignancy and risk stratification, and management planning can be adjusted according to US pattern.

Quality Assurance of ultrasound systems is necessary to ensure the reliability of results and to check for deterioration in performance; a number of bodies have produced guidelines. Testing has traditionally been the responsibility of Medical Physics Departments but the important role of sonographers has been recognised and recent publications have included tests to be performed by ultrasound users. Since there are differences in approach between these publications the BMUS QA Working Party was established to provide a consistent set of guidelines specifically for sonographers. Three levels of testing are recommended, to include infection control and inspections for scanner and probe damage, basic display checks and further tests to assess drop-out, sensitivity and noise. These tests should form part of a programme that includes more comprehensive testing at longer intervals, perhaps by a Medical Physics Department.

Conversely to breast cancer, few data and guidelines are available to explore and manage benign breast disorders. Therefore, the Collège national des gynécologues et obstétriciens français (CNGOF - French College of Gynaecologists and Obstetricians) decided to establish clinical practice guidelines for benign breast tumour (BBT). CNGOF appointed a committee with responsibility for selecting experts, compiling questions and summarizing the recommendations. The summary of valid scientific data for each question analyzed by the experts included a level of evidence, based on the quality of the data available and defined accordingly rating scheme developed by the Haute Autorité de santé (French National Authority for Health).

OBJECTIVE: To assess value of sonography, hCG and progesterone for diagnosis of first trimester nonviable pregnancy and to assess first trimester miscarriage management (except evacuation).
METHODS: French and English publications were searched using PubMed, Cochrane Library and international learned societies recommendations.
RESULTS: First trimester nonviable pregnancy is established with gestational sac mean diameter and embryo crown-rump length. Mean sac diameter≥25mm without embryo (LE2) or embryo crown-rump length≥7mm without heartbeat (LE2) by transvaginal sonography allows to diagnose pregnancy failure. Intrauterine pregnancy of uncertain viability is defined by intra-uterine gestational sac without embryo with heartbeat or without pregnancy diagnosis failure and requires a new transvaginal sonography. The delay for this second sonography depends on the aspect of intrauterine picture (i.e. presence of yolk sac or not, presence of embryo or not) (LE4). Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and progesterone are useful for pregnancy of unknown location (i.e. no gestational sac at transvaginal sonography): hCG ratio<15% between two-day serum samples when first hCG is<2000UI/mL (LE2) or low serum progesterone level (<3.2ng/mL) (LE2) exclude viable intrauterine pregnancy. There is not known prevention strategy for threatened miscarriage.