Can live bi-plane sonography reduce work-related musculoskeletal disorders of the wrist?

Objectives: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are a recognized problem affecting up to 81% of sonographers. Live bi-plane imaging is a new technology derived from matrix transducers, which allows the operator to scan in more than one plane simultaneously and can reduce the off-axis movement of the scanning arm when assessing abdominal organs. This study was performed to assess if using a bi-planar technique would reduce stressful movements of the wrist. Methods: Twelve patients were scanned by three operators (four each) using both a standard scanning abdominal protocol and a live bi-plane abdominal protocol using an iu22 scanner (Philips Healthcare, Bothell, WA) and an X6-1 probe with a bi-axial flexible electrogoniometer measuring the postural stresses on the scanning wrist throughout the study. Results: Significant flexion/extension and radial/ulnar deviations were markedly reduced using the bi-plane scanning protocol compared to the standard B-mode protocol, with an average reduction in significant repetitive wrist movements of 71.6% (p = <0.001). Conclusions: Bi-planar ultrasound scanning technique may reduce stressful movements on the scanning arm and might reduce the likelihood of WMSD assuming there are no other contributing factors. (c) 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Ultrasound 41:140-144, 2013; Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com). DOI: 10.1002/jcu.22003