A Systematic Review of Ultrasonography for the Diagnosis of Soft Tissue and Skin Abscesses in Emergency Departments

Background: Skin and soft tissue infections are among the primary causes of ED visits for patients. We set out to determine the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography in the diagnosis of soft tissue and skin abscesses in emergency department. Method: Our study meets the PRISMA requirements and was conducted in accordance with best practice principles. We searched PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and the Cochrane database of controlled trials to locate publications published between 2016 and 2023. We reviewed the available bibliographies for the studies and examined the articles to make sure nothing was missed. Result and conclusion: Five studies total, four in the ED and one in the clinic, were included in this systematic review. Four ultrasound investigations were conducted by emergency medicine experts, and one ultrasound investigation was conducted by family practice and internal medicine specialists. According to the included research, cellulitis abscesses may be reliably diagnosed by ultrasonography. Providers should consider using ultrasonography into their diagnostic examination of skin and soft tissue infections when there is a clinical question.