Point-of-Care Ultrasound E-Point Septal Separation for Diagnosing Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the effectiveness of E-point septal separation (EPSS) measurement via point-of-care ultrasound in diagnosing left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD) in adult patients presenting with acute dyspnea in the Emergency Department (ED). Analyzing six studies, the combined sensitivity and specificity for EPSS detecting reduced ejection fraction (EF) were found to be 0.78 and 0.71, respectively, while for severely reduced EF, they were 0.76 and 0.62. The odds ratio indicated no significant correlation between ED-performed EPSS and the detection of reduced EF. The study concluded that EPSS should not be used alone for diagnosing LVSD but may assist in conjunction with other tests, suggesting further research to address identified limitations.