Postgraduate medical journal
-
Boarding, the period in which a patient spends in the emergency department (ED) before admission, may be hazardous to critically ill patients, particularly the elderly. This study investigated the associations of boarding with hospital course, prognosis, and medical expenditure in older patients. ⋯ Extended ED boarding for critically ill medical patients over 65 years old was associated with negative outcomes, including longer ICU/hospital stays, higher treatment costs, and hospital mortality.
-
Conflicting results were shown on the relationship between cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) burden and functional outcomes in patients treated with intravenous tissues plasminogen activator (IV tPA). We aimed to investigate the relationship between CMBs burden and functional outcomes using the Microbleed Anatomical Rating Scale (MARS) and determine its optimal cutoff value. ⋯ Our study showed that MARS could be a potential method to assess the functional outcome based on CMBs in patients treated with IV tPA, and MARS score ≥ 1.5 might be an optimal threshold for poor functional outcome.
-
Is it best to achieve excellence in one or multiple fields? Is it better to be a medical doctor reading only medical textbooks all your life or is it better to also tour around the world as a concert pianist and investigate the mysteries of the brain by conducting research projects? As a medical doctor, classical pianist, and neuroscientist, I discuss the advantages, disadvantages, opportunities, and challenges of pursuing multiple careers, drawing from my own experience and from polymaths of the past.