A prospective study of a hand-held ultrasound device in abdominal aortic aneurysm evaluation.

Purpose: Effective treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) requires both early detection and timely repair to reduce aneurysm-related mortality. The purpose of this prospective study was to evaluate the utility of a hand-held ultrasonography (US) device in AAA screening in a Veterans Affairs vascular surgical service.

Methods: During a 16-month period, patients with risk factors for AAA were evaluated in a blinded fashion with a hand-held US device performed by physicians.