The American journal of emergency medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial
A randomized controlled trial assessing the use of ultrasound for nurse-performed intravenous placement in difficult access patients in the ED.
This study analyzed outcomes associated with nurse-performed ultrasound (US)-guided intravenous (IV) placement compared to standard of care (SOC) palpation IV technique on poor vascular access patients. ⋯ In difficult access patients, nurses were more successful in obtaining IV access using US guidance than palpation SOC technique. Lengthier placement times were observed more frequently when the SOC IV technique was used.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Effects of spinal immobilization at 20° on respiratory functions.
The purpose of the study is to investigate whether spinal immobilization with a long backboard (LBB) and semirigid cervical collar (CC) at 20° instead of 0° conserve pulmonary functions, including forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), and FEV1/FVC ratio. ⋯ The results of this and previous studies have shown that traditional spinal immobilization decreases respiratory function, whereas using spinal immobilization at 20° can reduce this decrease in function.
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Comparative Study
Treatment of Acute Renal Colic in US and French EDs: Simulated Cases and Real Cases in Acute Pain Management.
To assess the prescribing patterns in acute renal colic in emergency departments in US and France, by comparing physicians' intended prescription practices with actual prescription data in a sample of emergency practitioners. ⋯ We showed clear differences between intended and real analgesic prescription practices for patients suffering from renal colic. Some differences exist for pain perceptions and treatments between US and France.
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Assess the impact of scribes on an academic emergency department's (ED) patient-specific throughput. ⋯ Scribes failed to improve patient-specific throughput metrics in the first few months post implementation. Future work is needed to understand whether throughput efficiencies may eventually be gained after scribe implementation.
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With increasing utilization of computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) for the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism (PE), many patients undergo repeat CTs. ⋯ There is no risk-free period after an initial negative CTPA, and therefore, patients with clinical suspicion of PE should be rescanned even after a recent negative study. Even patients with multiple negative prior CTPAs have a measurable risk of subsequent PE. Established clinical prediction scoring systems must be used to triage the patients who need CTPAs.