Bedside echography is a key topic in the world of medical imaging. And it has been for several years. Back in November 2019, our company told you that point-of-care ultrasound is the future of ultrasound. That’s why we’re talking to you about a point-of-care ultrasound system from EchOpen, supported by Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), with whom we’ve been working for a long time. Its name? EchOpen 01. Find out more here.
Point-of-care ultrasound in France
Equipment levels
Before we talk about this new medical imaging system, it’s worth setting the scene with a few figures. Did you know? In France, only 5% of GPs have this kind of equipment in their practice. That’s a long way from the 45% in Germany. Internationally, as you read this article, you will see that this percentage varies enormously from country to country.
Opinions diverge
The medical community in France is divided over the use of point-of-care ultrasound in general practice. The Société Scientifique de Médecine Générale (SSMG), for example, is in favour. The Belgian association EBECHO is more cautious, saying that a protocol should be drawn up to prevent abuse. Finally, radiologists say they are “reticent”.
The benefits of point-of-care (POC) ultrasound
The benefits of point-of-care ultrasound have already been proven. PRS Healthcare was already talking about it. A study carried out by the AP-HM highlighted reliability and speed as its main advantages. It has also been shown to help combat medical deserts. Finally, it will make ultrasound more accessible to the general public and save lives when used, for example, by ambulance services, fire brigades or emergency departments.
The downside: cost!
Unfortunately, despite the advantages mentioned, the cost of war remains an inescapable factor that sooner or later will have to be addressed. Until now, the cost of such a device has been very high. Dr Parmentier of the SSMG, despite his position in favour of point-of-care ultrasound for general practitioners, admits that the cost of installation “can vary greatly between 12,000 and 25,000 euros”.
Bringing point-of-care ultrasound to the masses
The main obstacle to the development of point-of-care ultrasound has been the start-up costs for healthcare professionals.
On its website, EchOpen states that it wants to “make medical imaging accessible to all healthcare professionals worldwide”.
However, EchOpen 01 is not intended to replace a full-scale ultrasound scanner. As journalist Jean Zeid explained on the French radio station Europe 1: “This is not an ultrasound system for characterising lesions, for example, or for diagnosing pathologies. We’re talking about an ultrasound system to detect the first symptoms, the first warnings.
This is confirmed by Professor Eric Vibert of the Hepatobiliary Centre of the Paul Brousse Hospital (see video below): “It’s a device that you can carry in your pocket and that allows you to answer simple clinical questions very quickly. Is there a bruise around the liver? Are the bile ducts dilated? These are very simple things, but they are things for which you need an answer straight away, without having to call the radiologist for an ultrasound scan.”
Democratising Point-of-Care Ultrasound
So we can really talk about the democratisation of point-of-care ultrasound… And a democratisation that we won’t have to wait many more months to see on the market. EchOpen 01 has already been available in a number of ‘test’ services since the first quarter of 2024. Mass production started last April!
Did you know? A French study on the benefits of lung ultrasound in primary care, published on 20 May 2024, highlights the benefits – for healthcare professionals – of democratising point-of-care devices. Want to know more about this study? It’s the subject of our next article!
