The American journal of emergency medicine
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We report on a 35-year-old man who presented to the emergency department with acute abdominal pain, postural hypotension, and tachycardia after having been diagnosed with Epstein-Barr virus infection 1 week before. Abdominal ultrasound and computed tomography revealed splenic rupture, and the patient underwent successful proximal angiographic embolization of the splenic artery. ⋯ Six weeks later, he additionally developed severe sepsis with Propionibacterium granulosum due to an intrasplenic infected hematoma, which required drainage. All complications were treated without surgical splenectomy, and the patient finally made a full recovery.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Comparison of success and pain levels of supination-flexion and hyperpronation maneuvers in childhood nursemaid's elbow cases.
The aim of this study was to compare the hyperpronation (HP) and the supination-flexion (SF) reduction techniques for reducing nursemaid's elbow in terms of efficacy and pain. ⋯ The HP technique was found to be more successful compared with the SF technique in achieving reduction. We were unable to find any significant difference in pain levels observed between the 2 techniques.
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Predicting medical outcomes for acute pyelonephritis (APN) in women is difficult. Delay in diagnosis and treatment often results in rapid progression to circulatory collapse, multiple-organ failure, and death. The aim of this study was to investigate the value of procalcitonin (PCT) level in women with APN at ED. ⋯ Relative to other classic markers of inflammation, by distinguishing the severity of sepsis related to APN, PCT levels can provide additional aid to clinicians in disease severity classification and their decision of treatment at ED.
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Comparative Study
Hemodynamic consequences of ketamine vs etomidate for endotracheal intubation in the air medical setting.
Recent drug shortages have required the occasional replacement of etomidate for endotracheal intubation (ETI) by helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS), with ketamine. The purpose of this study was to assess whether there was an association between ketamine vs etomidate use as the main ETI drug, with hemodynamic or clinical (airway) end points. ⋯ Initial assessment of ETI success and complication rates, as well as peri-ETI hemodynamic changes, suggests no concerning complications associated with large-scale replacement of etomidate with ketamine as the major airway management drug for HEMS.
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Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Evaluation of the Mortality in Emergency Department Sepsis score combined with procalcitonin in septic patients.
To determine an effective method for predicting severity of sepsis and 28-day mortality of emergency department (ED) patients, we compared the Mortality in Emergency Department Sepsis (MEDS) score with procalcitonin (PCT), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and C-reactive protein (CRP) and evaluated the MEDS score combined with relevant biomarkers. ⋯ The predictive ability of the MEDS score for severity and 28-day mortality of septic ED patients is better than PCT, IL-6, and CRP levels. The MEDS score combined with PCT enhances the ability of risk stratification and prognostic evaluation.