Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
-
Emerg Med Australas · Dec 2018
Observational StudyExternal validation of the Rapid Assessment Prioritisation and Referral Tool for multidisciplinary teams in medical assessment and planning units.
The Rapid Assessment Prioritisation and Referral Tool (RAPaRT) was developed for identifying appropriate referrals to allied members of the multidisciplinary team in hospital medical assessment and planning units (MAPUs). This study examined the performance of the RAPaRT for identifying appropriate referrals as well as predicting requirement for admission to hospital and length of stay. ⋯ Findings supported the external validation of the RAPaRT. In addition, this investigation made a novel contribution in demonstrating that positive RAPaRT responses were associated with requirement for admission to an acute hospital ward and length of stay.
-
Emerg Med Australas · Dec 2018
Arterial to end-tidal carbon dioxide tension difference (CO2 gap) as a prognostic marker for adverse outcomes in emergency department patients presenting with suspected sepsis.
The arterial to end-tidal carbon dioxide tension difference (CO2 gap) correlates with physiologic dead space. The prognostic value of increased CO2 gap in trauma and respiratory distress patients is documented. Transpulmonary arteriovenous shunting is identified as a predictor of mortality in non-pulmonary sepsis. We set out to investigate the prognostic value of the CO2 gap in a pilot study of patients with suspected sepsis from non-respiratory causes. ⋯ In this pilot study of patients with suspected sepsis from non-respiratory causes, an increased CO2 gap demonstrates value in risk stratification and needs to be further evaluated and compared to other existent biomarkers.