Ultrasound-guided intervention for hip joint

Abstract

The purpose of this work is to review the main applications of ultrasound-guided hip interventional procedures, describing the indications and methodology. Ultrasound is a method considered safe for patients, as it has not been shown a possible damage due to ultrasound energy transmitted towards the patient’s tissues, as opposed to methods that make use of ionizing radiation, such as conventional radiography and computed tomography. In addition, ultra- sound is quick and effective in guiding the needle to the desired location avoiding vascular and/or nerve structures, thus enabling greater security, compared to the techniques performed in interventional fluoroscopy, which also have the disadvantage of a large delivery of ionizing radiation for both patient and operator. Several authors have described the main techniques of ultrasound-guided hip intervention, and its various applications that can be both diagnostic (as in the case of joint fluid aspiration to assess the presence or absence of septic arthritis) and therapeutic (as in the case of drugs inoculations or evacuation of exceeding intra-articular fluid).