Annals of emergency medicine
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Cardiac arrest caused by massive pulmonary embolism is highly refractory to conventional resuscitation. Emergency surgical embolectomy has been considered the only effective intervention. We present the case of a 33-year-old woman who suffered a massive pulmonary embolism with circulatory arrest refractory to one half hour of aggressive CPR. ⋯ Rapid hemodynamic and clinical improvement followed the bolus dose. The patient was discharged later without neurological or other sequelae. This is the first reported case of successful thrombolytic therapy of massive pulmonary embolism during prolonged CPR.
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We report the case of a 5-month-old girl who was given an adult Fleet enema by her mother because of her concern that the baby was constipated. Within minutes the child became extremely ill. She developed shock, hyperphosphatemia, hypocalcemia, and acidosis. This case is presented to demonstrate that life-threatening events may result after the injudicious use of enemas in children.
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A study of emergency medicine residency training graduates was conducted to determine their perceptions of the quality of their graduate training. A sample of 300 individuals was randomly selected from a population of 1,000 persons graduating from 1982 through 1984. Respondents were asked to use a scale of 1 to 5 (with 1 being highest) to rate the adequacy of their residency training relative to 20 major core content areas. ⋯ Overall, residents were quite positive in their perceptions regarding the quality of their training. They indicated plans to attend continuing medical education programs to reinforce some of their training and to address some of the deficiencies they perceived in residency training. Programs are encouraged to conduct similar surveys with their own graduates to assess particular strengths and weaknesses.
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Blind nasotracheal intubation attempts by paramedics in the field were prospectively reviewed. In particular, we analyzed the frequency, success rate, complication rate, frequency of performance by each paramedic, indications, and patient outcome. Blind nasotracheal intubation was attempted in 324 patients and successful in 231. ⋯ The incidence of complications tended to decline with increasing paramedic frequency but did not reach statistical significance (P greater than .05). Blind nasotracheal intubation is a safe initial field airway approach in spontaneously breathing patients in whom there are no contraindications. Even with a low frequency of performance, success and complication rates are acceptable.
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We conducted a study to determine the type, incidence, and timing of complications that occur in patients who have a carbon monoxide (CO) exposure serious enough to require hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). Complication data were retrospectively collected from a ten-year period for 297 consecutive CO-poisoned emergency department patients who received HBOT. HBOT was indicated for 41% of the patients because of an elevated carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) level alone. ⋯ These included emesis (6%), seizures (5%), agitation requiring restraints or sedation (2%), cardiac dysrhythmias or arrests (2%), and arterial hypotension (2%). No patient's level of consciousness deteriorated subsequent to the initial resuscitation except for those who later had a generalized seizure. The most significant complication attributable to HBOT was tension pneumothorax, noted in three patients (1%).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)