The American journal of emergency medicine
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Acute aortic dissection is often a life-threatening event that usually presents as a sudden, severe, exquisitely painful, ripping sensation in the chest or back. There are a few reports of atypical findings or no pain in the literature. We report 2 patients with painless acute aortic dissection who presented to the emergency department (ED) with sudden onset paraplegia.
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This study examined the magnitude of association between alcohol misuse and recent depressive symptoms. ⋯ The findings of this study yield information that could be used by ED health care practitioners and health educators to educate ED patients at risk for alcohol misuse and depression.
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This study examined the variability of blood pressure measurements and prevalence estimates of elevated blood pressure in emergency department (ED) patients using 4 different methods of categorization. ⋯ Determination of elevated blood pressure in ED patients is largely dependent on the method of blood pressure categorization.
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Amino-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) is useful for the triage of patients with dyspnea. Our aim was to determine whether NT-proBNP levels could predict in-hospital outcome in breathless elderly patients. ⋯ NT-proBNP higher than 3855 pg/mL is associated with in-hospital mortality in patients aged 75 years and older admitted for dyspnea.