Sonographic Neuromonitoring in the Stroke Unit and Neurointensive Care

Background To give an up-to-date overview of neurosonographic diagnostics in intensive care medicine. Methods Selective literature research with critical appraisal from 1984 on including national and international guidelines, and expert opinion. Results Fast and valid diagnostics in acute stroke is the main field of application of neurosonography. Specific sonographic monitoring methods bear great advantages for intensive care patients, especially "as-often-as-wanted" repetitive imaging under real-time conditions. A number of new developments make neurosonography an interesting area of research. Conclusion Neurosonography has a key role in neurologic intensive care medicine since many years. It remains important to continuously spread the methods further and strengthen its validity by scientific evidence.