Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
-
Emerg Med Australas · Oct 2007
Clinical TrialOptimization of propofol dose shortens procedural sedation time, prevents resedation and removes the requirement for post-procedure physiologic monitoring.
To examine the effect of propofol dosing (total dose and number of doses) on patient sedation time and likelihood of resedation. ⋯ Shorter sedation times are seen with lower doses of propofol. Patients do not need prolonged post-procedure monitoring because the occurrence of spontaneous resedation associated with propofol use is a rare event. This has implications for patient flow and staff resource allocation in a busy ED.
-
Emerg Med Australas · Oct 2007
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyLignocaine is a better analgesic than either ethyl chloride or nitrous oxide for peripheral intravenous cannulation.
Peripheral intravenous (i.v.) cannulation is a painful, frequently performed ED procedure. It is common practice in other medical settings to offer analgesia prior to cannulation. ⋯ The present trial confirms the findings of Harris and colleagues that lignocaine reduces the pain of cannulation in the ED. Lignocaine reduced the pain of i.v. cannulation more effectively than entonox or ethyl chloride.
-
Emerg Med Australas · Aug 2007
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyComparison of lignocaine and water-based lubricating gels for female urethral catheterization: a randomized controlled trial.
It is standard practice to use lignocaine gel during male urethral catheterization. However, it is commonly believed that topical anaesthetic confers no benefit during female catheterization hence lubricating gel alone is more commonly used. The present study aimed to determine whether lignocaine gel decreased pain compared with water-based lubricating gel for female urethral catheterization in the ED. ⋯ Lignocaine gel substantially reduces the procedural pain of female urethral catheterization by comparison with use of a water-based lubricating gel.
-
The largest democracy on earth, the second most populous country and one of the most progressive countries in the globe, India, has advanced tremendously in most conventional fields of Medicine. However, emergency medicine (EM) is a nascent specialty and is yet to receive an identity. Today, it is mostly practised by inadequately trained clinicians in poorly equipped emergency departments (EDs), with no networking. ⋯ The present article intends to highlight factors that continue to challenge the handful of dedicated, full time emergency physicians who have tenaciously pursued the cause for the past decade. A three-pronged synchronous development strategy is recommended: (i) recognise the specialty of EM as a distinct and independent basic specialty; (ii) initiate postgraduate training in EM, thus enabling EDs in all hospitals to be staffed by trained Emergency physicians; and (iii) ensure that EMs are staffed by trained ambulance officers. The time is ripe for a paradigm shift, since the country is aware that emergency care is the felt need of the hour and it is the right of the citizen.