Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
-
Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2012
Venous thromboembolism in emergency department patients with rigid immobilization for lower leg injury: Incidence and risk factors.
To determine the incidence and risk factors for symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE) in adults who are discharged from the ED with rigid immobilization for lower limb injury. ⋯ The estimated VTE incidence was between 3% and 7% in this ED population with age and diagnosis of Achilles tendon rupture increasing risk. Prospective research to more accurately determine incidence, severity and risk stratification is required before firm recommendations on the likely risk versus benefit profile of thromboprophylaxis can be made for this population.
-
Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2012
Assessment of the effect of Advanced Paediatric Life Support training on level of self-perceived preparedness among health-care workers in Cambodia.
The objective of this study was to survey the self-perceived preparedness of Cambodia's Advanced Paediatric Life Support (APLS) providers towards their APLS training and accreditation 5 years post-implementation. ⋯ APLS training has increased the self-perceived preparedness of paediatric health-care workers in Cambodia. RESULTS indicate moderate relevance to real patient resuscitations experienced by health workers, and the perceived recall of the teachings and sense of preparation from APLS training does not significantly decline over time. However, our results suggest subsequent further APLS instructor courses might maintain resuscitation preparedness.
-
Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2012
Case ReportsEmergency presentation of emboli to multiple sites from an atrial myxoma.
A middle aged man presented to our ED with back pain and confusion, had evidence of acute arterial insufficiency to his lower limbs and myocardial infarction on initial ECG. His workup included an urgent CT, which revealed a filling defect in his dilated left atrium, renal and splenic infarcts, and an embolism in his left internal iliac artery. Urgent embolectomy and fasciotomy could not save his left lower limb, and emergency cardiac surgery was required to excise an atrial myxoma. A brief narrative review of the literature is also presented, with this case being unusual in causing such widespread concurrent multiple organ damage, including stroke and myocardial infarct.
-
Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2012
Editorial CommentDisaster triage: evidence, consistency and standard practice.