wood chip

Foreign body | Maura Kennedy MD | Boston, MA

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A young M was working with plywood when he heard a 'snap', and now presents with a piece of a wood stuck 'deep in the palm of my hand.'  

Here, Maura nicely localizes the wood chip to guide her extraction of a 4 cm piece of wood. 

POCUS soft tissue shows a hyper-echoic (white) foreign body in short axis that is casting a shadow down the remainder of the screen.

SONO PEARLS: Symmetry can be helpful. While trying to figure out what you're seeing, taking a look at the opposite hand, shoulder, knee, foot etc. can help.