Abstract
Eighty-nine consecutive patients with suspected intracranial masses were examined by auscultatory percussion in a blind study to assess the sensitivity of the procedure. Each patient underwent computed tomography (CT) of the brain as part of his medical care, and the results were compared with those of auscultatory percussion. Fifty-one of the patients had abnormal CT scans, of whom 44 (86%) had abnormal (positive) findings on auscultatory percussion; seven (13%) yielded false-negative results. Each of the patients with subdural haematomas had distinctly positive findings by auscultatory percussion. Of the 38 patients with normal CT scans, 11 had strokes with hemiparesis, and each had positive findings in the contralateral hemisphere by auscultatory percussion. The remaining 27 patients with normal CT scans were healthy; 25 had normal findings on auscultatory percussion, two (7%) gave false-positive results. Twenty subjects were studied with phonoscopy. Auscultatory percussion is easy to perform and is clinically useful.
Full text
PDF
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Campbell J. K., Houser O. W., Stevens J. C., Wahner H. W., Baker H. L., Jr, Folger W. N. Computed tomography and radionuclide imaging in the evaluation of ischemic stroke. Radiology. 1978 Mar;126(3):695–702. doi: 10.1148/126.3.695. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Grossman R. G. Treatment of patients with intracranial hematomas. N Engl J Med. 1981 Jun 18;304(25):1540–1541. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198106183042510. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Guarino J. R. Auscultatory percussion of the bladder to detect urinary retention. N Engl J Med. 1981 Sep 17;305(12):701–701. doi: 10.1056/nejm198109173051217. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Guarino J. R. Auscultatory percussion of the chest. Lancet. 1980 Jun 21;1(8182):1332–1334. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(80)91788-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Guarino J. R. Auscultatory percussion. A new aid in the examination of the chest. J Kans Med Soc. 1974 Jun;75(6):193–194. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Jennett B., MacMillan R. Epidemiology of head injury. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1981 Jan 10;282(6258):101–104. doi: 10.1136/bmj.282.6258.101. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Seelig J. M., Becker D. P., Miller J. D., Greenberg R. P., Ward J. D., Choi S. C. Traumatic acute subdural hematoma: major mortality reduction in comatose patients treated within four hours. N Engl J Med. 1981 Jun 18;304(25):1511–1518. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198106183042503. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]