Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
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Emerg Med Australas · Oct 2022
Multicenter Study Observational StudyPrevalence and predictors of poor outcome in children with febrile neutropaenia presenting to the emergency department.
Children with acquired neutropaenia due to cancer chemotherapy are at high risk of severe infection. The present study aims to describe the prevalence and predictors of poor outcomes in children with febrile neutropaenia (FN). ⋯ Very few patients with FN required ICU-level care. Vital signs, biomarkers and clinical sepsis scores for the prediction of poor outcomes are of limited utility in children with FN.
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Emerg Med Australas · Oct 2022
Multicenter StudyExploring the use of virtual reality to manage distress in adolescent patients in emergency departments: A feasibility study.
The present study aimed to explore the feasibility and potential benefits of deploying virtual reality (VR) for adolescents in the ED. ⋯ VR technology can effectively be used in EDs to assist adolescents and young adults better manage their distress and take steps towards activating more self-control mechanisms that will in turn allow for more meaningful engagements to be established with health clinicians. This technology has broad implications for reducing distress in adolescents in a variety of clinical contexts.
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Emerg Med Australas · Oct 2022
Observational StudyPre-hospital emergency anaesthesia in trauma patients: An observational study from a state-wide Australian pre-hospital and retrieval service.
To assess the performance of an Australian pre-hospital and retrieval medicine (PHRM) service against the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) standard which recommends that pre-hospital emergency anaesthesia (PHEA) in trauma patients should be conducted within 45-min of first contact with emergency services. ⋯ In a cohort of 337 patients treated by a dedicated PHRM service in South Australia, the median time to PHEA was 54 (38-80) min with only 37% of patients receiving PHEA within 45 min from the activation of the team. Despite differing patient demographics, the percentage of patients receiving PHEA within the recommended time frame was greater than a similar cohort from the UK. However, both data sets still fall short of recommended targets.
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Emerg Med Australas · Oct 2022
Observational StudyHyperkalaemia in the emergency department: Epidemiology, management and monitoring of treatment outcomes.
To describe the epidemiology, treatment and monitoring of treatment outcomes of patients presenting to the ED with hyperkalaemia. ⋯ Most ED patients with hyperkalaemia have identifiable clinical and medication-related risk factors. Variations in care were widespread and monitoring for iatrogenic adverse events was suboptimal.
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Emerg Med Australas · Oct 2022
Sydney 'lockout' liquor licensing law restrictions have been associated with a sustained reduction in emergency department presentations from assaults over 5 years.
The present study assessed the impact of changes to the New South Wales Liquor Act in 2014 on assault-related presentations to the ED of St Vincent's Hospital. This hospital is the primary receiving hospital for the area affected by these laws. ⋯ There has been a significant reduction in assault-related presentations to St Vincent's Hospital following the changes to the liquor licensing laws that has been sustained for 5 years with no significant decrease in the those with severe assault injuries.