Assessment of cardiac image quality from single-probe handheld ultrasound devices.
6 affiliations
- 1Department of Medicine, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.
- 2Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.
- 3Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute, Tufts Medical Center, Tufts University, Boston, MA, USA.
- 4Department of Computer Science, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA.
- 5Cardiovascular Center, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.
- 6Predictive Analytics and Comparative Effectiveness (PACE) Center, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.
Abstract
Aims
This study aims to assess quality of cardiac ultrasound imaging from commercially available single-probe handheld devices.Methods and results
Cardiac imaging from single-probe handheld ultrasound devices was prospectively acquired by registered cardiac sonographers. Videos were graded on a scale of 1 (uninterpretable) to 5 (diagnostic-quality imaging) by 2 sonographers. The average image quality score for each cine loop was analysed. Interpretable imaging was defined as an average IQ score ≥ 2. Good image quality was defined as an average IQ score ≥ 4. Imaging from single-probe devices representing 518 videos from 206 patients was assessed. The mean age was 72 (SD 11.1) years. Agreement on image quality was moderate (weighted kappa 0.50, 95% CI 0.45-0.55). The correlation between sonographer quality grades was 0.60. The median average IQ score was 2.5 (1.5). 454 (88%) of the videos were interpretable (average IQ ≥ 2). At least one interpretable video was obtained for 187 (91%) patients. 62/518 (12%) of videos had good image quality (average score ≥ 4). There was a trend towards lower image quality with increasing BMI categories [16-25, median 3.0 (2.0, 3.5), 25-29, median 3.0 (2.0, 3.5), > 29 median 2.5 (2.0, 3.0), P < 0.001].Conclusion
Basic interpretable imaging from single-probe handheld ultrasound devices can be obtained for most patients under idealized conditions, suggesting possible use for enhanced cardiac disease detection. Since imaging from a significant minority of patients is uninterpretable and lower image quality is associated with higher BMI, rigorous assessment of image quality is essential prior to image interpretation.
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BibTeX
@article{grimaldo2026assessment,
title = {{Assessment of cardiac image quality from single-probe handheld ultrasound devices.}},
author = {Anna Grimaldo and Benjamin Koethe and Shane Williams and Eileen W Mai and Joseph Nguyen and Monica M Dehn and Lisa Small and Jennie An and Veronique Recile and Denise Daudelin and Ludovic Trinquart and David M Kent and Ayan R Patel and Michael Hughes and Benjamin S Wessler},
journal = {European heart journal. Imaging methods and practice},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1093/ehjimp/qyag172},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42910194},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Assessment of cardiac image quality from single-probe handheld ultrasound devices.
AU - Anna Grimaldo
AU - Benjamin Koethe
AU - Shane Williams
AU - Eileen W Mai
AU - Joseph Nguyen
AU - Monica M Dehn
AU - Lisa Small
AU - Jennie An
AU - Veronique Recile
AU - Denise Daudelin
AU - Ludovic Trinquart
AU - David M Kent
AU - Ayan R Patel
AU - Michael Hughes
AU - Benjamin S Wessler
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/06
JO - European heart journal. Imaging methods and practice
DO - 10.1093/ehjimp/qyag172
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42910194
AB - Aims This study aims to assess quality of cardiac ultrasound imaging from commercially available single-probe handheld devices.Methods and results Cardiac imaging from single-probe handheld ultrasound devices was prospectively acquired by registered cardiac sonographers. Videos were graded on a scale of 1 (uninterpretable) to 5 (diagnostic-quality imaging) by 2 sonographers. The average image quality score for each cine loop was analysed. Interpretable imaging was defined as an average IQ score ≥ 2. Good image quality was defined as an average IQ score ≥ 4. Imaging from single-probe devices representing 518 videos from 206 patients was assessed. The mean age was 72 (SD 11.1) years. Agreement on image quality was moderate (weighted kappa 0.50, 95% CI 0.45-0.55). The correlation between sonographer quality grades was 0.60. The median average IQ score was 2.5 (1.5). 454 (88%) of the videos were interpretable (average IQ ≥ 2). At least one interpretable video was obtained for 187 (91%) patients. 62/518 (12%) of videos had good image quality (average score ≥ 4). There was a trend towards lower image quality with increasing BMI categories [16-25, median 3.0 (2.0, 3.5), 25-29, median 3.0 (2.0, 3.5), > 29 median 2.5 (2.0, 3.0), P < 0.001].Conclusion Basic interpretable imaging from single-probe handheld ultrasound devices can be obtained for most patients under idealized conditions, suggesting possible use for enhanced cardiac disease detection. Since imaging from a significant minority of patients is uninterpretable and lower image quality is associated with higher BMI, rigorous assessment of image quality is essential prior to image interpretation.
SN - 2755-9637
ER -