Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 21, 2026
Point of Care Transcranial Color-Coded Duplex Ultrasound of the Middle Cerebral Artery
Published on: August 9, 2024
Transcranial color-coded duplex sonography for evaluation of midline-shift after chronic-subdural hematoma evacuation
Andrea Cattalani1, Vincenzo Maria Grasso2, Matteo Vitali2
1Neurosurgical Training Program, Department of Clinical Surgical, Diagnostic and Pediatric Sciences, Neurosurgery, Università degli Studi di Pavia, Via Brambilla 74, 27100, Pavia, Italy; Surgical Department, Neurosurgical Unit, Azienda Ospedaliera SS. Antonio e Biagio e Cesare Arrigo, Via Venezia 16, 15121, Alessandria, Italy.
Objective:
The incidence of chronic Subdural hematoma (cSDH) is increasing and its rate of recurrence varies from 5 to 33%. A postoperative brain midline-shift (MLS) on computed tomography (CT) equal or larger than 5mm is a risk factor for recurrence. Transcranial color-coded duplex sonography (TCCDS) is a noninvasive bedside reproducible technique useful to detect MLS. The aim of our study was to compare in patients affected by cSDH, the values of MLS obtained pre- and post-operatively by TCCDS and brain CT.
Patients And Methods:
32 patients affected by cSDH entered the study between July 2016 and January 2017. MLS values obtained by TCCDS and brain CT were compared using Bland-Altman plot and linear regression analysis. Using the same techniques we also explored if the agreement between the two imaging modes was comparable in pre- and post-operative data pairs.
Results:
64 data pairs of MLS values obtained by TCCDS and CT were analysed. Bland-Altman diagrams did not show any systematic bias of the data and linear regression indicated a significant correlation between the two measures both before and after hematoma evacuation.
Conclusion:
In patients affected by cSDH, MLS values obtained before and after surgery by TCCDS are comparable to those obtained by CT; TCCDS might be considered an alternative to CT scan in the management of patients after cSDH evacuation. We suggest that close clinical bedside examination and TCCDS might be appropriate for the post-operative management of cSDH, reserving CT scan only to patients with overt clinical deterioration and/or increasing MLS.
