This suggests the benefit of adding bedside standardized ultrasonography in the first-line diagnostic management of suspected gynecologic emergencies. One of the strengths of our study is that TVUS findings are recorded routinely at our institution using a standardized protocol [11]. This standardized protocol, with a routine recording of standardized images, allows a reviewing of those scans, even a long time after. Recording pictures in the

patient’s chart may also decrease the need for subsequent repeat Dibutyryl-cAMP mouse ultrasonography, thereby saving time and diminishing healthcare costs. Furthermore, we did not have to rely on a written description of the TVUS findings in the medical record. The TVUS findings were determined by blinded observers using objective criteria. These selleck chemicals criteria are reliable and have been proven useful for diagnosing

specific gynecologic emergencies [9, 10, 13, 15, 21]. It has been demonstrated that the availability of TVUS at the initial assessment of both pregnant and nonpregnant women decreased patient time management, unnecessary admissions, outpatient follow-up examinations and also modified treatment decisions [22, 23]. Nonetheless, we did not find any published study showing clear-cut evidence that routine ultrasonography decreases unfavorable patient outcomes. We demonstrate that including around-the-clock TVUS as a first step investigation in addition to the physical examination is an effective strategy to rule out surgical emergencies at the gynecologic ED by reducing the risk of diagnostic errors. In France, there is at

least one resident to on duty around the clock with unlimited access to TVUS in gynecological EDs, even when no radiologist or board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist is available. Another particularity in France is that ultrasonography for gynecologic emergencies are under the supervision of board-certified obstetricians/gynecologists instead of radiologists. In contrast, in most of the developed countries, emergency ultrasonography is performed at the request of ED physicians by radiologists or board-certified obstetricians/gynecologists [22, 23]. Although, this strategy optimizes the quality of ultrasound examination, our results suggest that suspecting surgical emergencies based on the physical examination alone does not perform well for the diagnosis of gynecologic emergencies. Instead, the French strategy of first-line ultrasonography performed by non-specialized healthcare providers Selleck Cisplatin should be compared with the so-called “limited” sonogram in the 2nd/3rd trimester of pregnancy. These examinations do not replace a standard complete ultrasound examination but are performed to obtain an immediate answer to a specific clinical question [24], as FAST scanning in EDs.