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Updated: Aug 23, 2026

An Approach to Point-Of-Care Ultrasound Evaluation of the Abdominal Aorta
Published on: September 8, 2023
Best evidence topic report. Abdominal radiography in "body packers"
Jonathan Costello1, Will Townend
1Department of Emergency Medicine, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9WL, UK.
Abstract:
A short cut review was carried out to establish whether an abdominal radiograph has clinical utility in the management of patients who claim to have swallowed drug filled packages. Twelve papers were found using the reported search, of which two presented the best evidence to answer the clinical question. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results and study weaknesses of these best papers are tabulated. A clinical bottom line is stated.
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