October 10, 2023 — Emergency physicians attending the ACEP23 conference in Philadelphia were the first to see the new Clarius PAL HD3, a wireless handheld whole-body ultrasound scanner combining phased and linear arrays on a single head. This device offers superior image quality and exceptional versatility for real-time imaging of both superficial and deep anatomy at the bedside 1, making it suitable for a wide range of clinical applications while improving workflow continuity. It's as compact as an iPhone and works seamlessly with iOS or Android devices, ensuring easy mobility from patient to patient. Clarius PAL HD3 has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is available in the United States.
"The Clarius PAL is a big breakthrough for Clarius and for clinical ultrasound in general. Integrating the phased and linear array means you only need one transducer for 95 to 99% of the studies at the bedside," says Dr. Tom Cook, an emergency physician and ultrasound educator who practices in South Carolina. "I work at a hospital with a big trauma center and being able to carry just one scanner to the bedside to get the best high-quality image to scan every part of the body in a few minutes is incredibly powerful. Everybody's very, very excited about it in my department."
With the broadest frequency range in a handheld ultrasound scanner, Clarius PAL HD3 is the only whole-body handheld scanner to deliver high-resolution images from the skin down to 40 cm of depth. Healthcare professionals can perform whole-body ultrasound exams without the need to swap devices or to transport bulky systems between rooms, especially in critical care settings like the emergency room. Clarius PAL HD3 is the 11th wireless handheld ultrasound scanner in the Clarius specialty ultrasound lineup.
"The best thing about the Clarius PAL is it really does everything I need on a shift," says Dr. Oron Frenkel, an emergency physician who practices in the United States and Canada. "I don't ever have to reach for the cart to augment my practice. There is no situation that I can imagine where the scanner wouldn't be able to deliver what I need, either on the same patient, if I need to scan different parts of them during a single presentation or going from bed to bed during a shift."
"It's super portable, small, wireless, and it fits in my pocket," adds Dr. Brian Johnson, an emergency physician practicing in Washington State. "I can pull it out and switch between a linear and a phased probe with the press of a button. It's nice to get a good snapshot of a critically ill patient right away, so that helps me with the workflow. I can walk out of the room and say, this patient is in pulmonary edema or has a ruptured AAA, which guides my next steps in patient management."
Clarius ultrasound scanners are designed with 192 piezoelectric crystals and widely known to deliver superior image quality.1 While most handheld scanners feature only 1 to 2 beamformers, Clarius uses the same advanced 8 beamformer processing technology used by higher-end traditional systems. This delivers up to 8 times the speed and performance of other handhelds for clear and detailed imaging to support precise and rapid assessments, ensuring accurate and timely care for patients.
"Although Clarius is the specialty handheld company, we recognize there's still a broad market for a single, versatile device that supports multiple exams and broad clinical applications especially for hospitals, where more clinicians are using handheld ultrasound as they move from patient to patient," says Kris Dickie, VP of R&D at Clarius who led the project from ideation to commercialization. "When we looked at the broader landscape of who was using our HD3 devices, we were inspired to design a whole-body ultrasound device with better image quality, performance, and usability than what was currently available."
For more information: www.clarius.com
Reference:
1. Park KE, Mehta P, Tran C, Parikh AO, Zhou Q, Zhang-Nunes S. A comparison of five point-of-care ultrasound devices for use in ophthalmology and facial aesthetics. Ultrasound. 2023;0(0). doi:10.1177/1742271X231166895
February 16, 2026 
