Biomaterial Database

Duplex ultrasound in the pre-operative assessment of varicose veins. 1996

P M Dixon

Department of Radiology, Palmerston North Hospital, New Zealand.

A technique for the pre-operative localization of sites of incompetence using B mode and Doppler ultrasound (duplex) is described. The reliability of this investigation was compared with the clinical assessment of a group of surgeons experienced in varicose vein surgery, and with the subsequent surgical findings. Duplex scans were found to be over 98% sensitive and 93-97% specific compared with the surgical findings. Clinical techniques were much less sensitive and specific, and in addition there was uncertainty about incompetence in up to 52% of cases. The place of ultrasound and comparison with other techniques is discussed. While this technique is widely used, especially in vascular laboratories, the technique has not previously been reported in detail.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D011300	Preoperative Care	Care given during the period prior to undergoing surgery when psychological and physical preparations are made according to the special needs of the individual patient. This period spans the time between admission to the hospital to the time the surgery begins. (From Dictionary of Health Services Management, 2d ed)	Care, Preoperative,Preoperative Procedure,Preoperative Procedures,Procedure, Preoperative,Procedures, Preoperative
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D012189	Retrospective Studies	Studies used to test etiologic hypotheses in which inferences about an exposure to putative causal factors are derived from data relating to characteristics of persons under study or to events or experiences in their past. The essential feature is that some of the persons under study have the disease or outcome of interest and their characteristics are compared with those of unaffected persons.	Retrospective Study,Studies, Retrospective,Study, Retrospective
D012680	Sensitivity and Specificity	Binary classification measures to assess test results. Sensitivity or recall rate is the proportion of true positives. Specificity is the probability of correctly determining the absence of a condition. (From Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 2d ed)	Specificity,Sensitivity,Specificity and Sensitivity
D014648	Varicose Veins	Enlarged and tortuous VEINS.	Varices,Varix,Varicose Vein,Vein, Varicose,Veins, Varicose
D018616	Ultrasonography, Doppler, Duplex	Ultrasonography applying the Doppler effect combined with real-time imaging. The real-time image is created by rapid movement of the ultrasound beam. A powerful advantage of this technique is the ability to estimate the velocity of flow from the Doppler shift frequency.	Doppler Ultrasonography, Duplex,Ultrasonography, Duplex Doppler,Doppler Duplex Ultrasonography,Duplex Doppler Ultrasonography,Duplex Ultrasonography, Doppler,Ultrasonography, Doppler Duplex