Brief Article
Copyright ©2012 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Radiol. Jun 28, 2012; 4(6): 273-277
Published online Jun 28, 2012. doi: 10.4329/wjr.v4.i6.273
Evaluation of vascular puncture needles with specific modifications for enhanced ultrasound visibility: In vitro study
Nobuyuki Kawai, Hiroki Minamiguchi, Morio Sato, Motoki Nakai, Hiroki Sanda, Takami Tanaka, Akira Ikoma, Kouhei Nakata, Shintaro Shirai, Tetsuo Sonomura
Nobuyuki Kawai, Hiroki Minamiguchi, Morio Sato, Motoki Nakai, Hiroki Sanda, Takami Tanaka, Akira Ikoma, Kouhei Nakata, Shintaro Shirai, Tetsuo Sonomura, Department of Radiology, Wakayama Medical University, 811-1 Kimiidera, Wakayama-shi, Wakayama 641-8510, Japan
Author contributions: Kawai N and Minamiguchi H contributed equally to this work; Kawai N, Nakai M and Sanda H designed the research; Ikoma A, Tanaka T and Nakata K performed the research; Nakata K and Ikoma A contributed new reagents/analytic tools; Shirai S and Sonomura T analyzed the data; Sato M and Kawai N wrote the paper.
Correspondence to: Morio Sato, MD, Professor, Department of Radiology, Wakayama Medical University, 811-1 Kimiidera, Wakayama-shi, Wakayama 641-8510, Japan. morisato@wakayama-med.ac.jp
Telephone: +81-73-4410604 Fax: +81-73-4443110
Received: February 29, 2012
Revised: June 14, 2012
Accepted: June 21, 2012
Published online: June 28, 2012
Abstract

AIM: To determine which modification to a vascular puncture needle results in increased visualization during ultrasound (US)-guided vascular puncture.

METHODS: We evaluated US images of a phantom made of degassed gelatin and each of the following four modified versions of a commercially available vascular puncture needle (18 G): re-cut needle, dimple needle, rough-surface needle (rough over the sections of needle located 3-6 mm from the tip), and a needle with four side holes (side holes covered by the sheath). An unmodified commercially available puncture needle was used as a control. Five interventional radiologists evaluated image quality according to the following classification grade: I, invisible; II, poor; III, moderate; IV, good; V, excellent.

RESULTS: The highest score for needle visualization was obtained for the needle with four side holes. The re-cut needle scored the same as the control. Multiple comparisons were conducted using overall evaluation scores among the commercially available needle, dimple needle, rough-surface needle (3-6 mm), and the needle with four side holes. A significantly higher score was obtained for the needle with four side holes (P < 0.05/6).

CONCLUSION: The needle with four side holes was prominently visualized and gained a significantly higher score (compared with the other needles) in a phantom evaluation.

Keywords: Ultrasound visibility; Vascular puncture needle; Side-hole needle; Dimple needle; Rough-surface needle