The Use of Point-of-Care Ultrasound in the Diagnosis and Percutaneous Aspiration of Liver Abscess in a Resource-Limited Country: A Case Report

• Published in: Curēus (Palo Alto, CA) Vol. 16; no. 7; p. e63905
• Main Authors: Bittaye, Sheikh Omar, Tamba, Syadiba, Jaw, Mariam, Joof, Sidat, Pelletier, Ian, Pelletier, Jessica
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Cureus Inc 05-07-2024; Cureus
• Subjects: Abdomen; Abscesses; Blood; Case reports; Gastroenterology; Healthcare Technology; Hepatitis; Hospitals; Infectious diseases; Liver; Medical diagnosis; Neutrophils; Point of care testing; Ultrasonic imaging; United States > US; Gambia; point-of-care-ultrasound (pocus); low-resource setting; gastroenterology; liver abscess; clinical case report
• ISSN: 2168-8184; 2168-8184
• DOI: 10.7759/cureus.63905

Diagnosis and management of liver abscesses in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) is difficult due to limited diagnostic imaging availability. Limited data is available describing the use of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) in the diagnosis and percutaneous aspiration of liver abscesses in resource-limited countries. We describe a 21-year-old female who was diagnosed with a liver abscess. The diagnosis of liver abscess was made via POCUS, and the patient was successfully managed with empiric antimicrobials and repeated POCUS-assisted percutaneous needle aspiration. In resource-limited settings, adequate training of personnel and availability of POCUS may help in early diagnosis and treatment of liver abscess - thus helping to reduce its related morbidity and mortality - while also aiding in resource conservation.