The bubble study: ultrasound confirmation of central venous catheter placement.

Study Objective: The objective was to determine if ultrasound (US) can more rapidly confirm central venous catheter (CVC) position in comparison to chest radiography (CXR) in the emergency department.

Methods: The study included a convenience sample of emergency department patients with supradiaphragmatic CVCs and a CXR for confirmation. Ultrasound was used for CVC confirmation by visualizing microbubble artifact in the right atrium after injection of saline through the distal port.