The American journal of emergency medicine
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Review Case Reports
Duplicate Inferior Vena Cava Filters: More is Not Always Better.
Duplication of the inferior vena cava (IVC) has been reported in literature. This achieves clinical significance in the setting of lower extremity venous thromboembolism with a contraindication for anticoagulation. We describe a case of lower extremity deep vein thrombosis with duplicate IVC. ⋯ We conducted a PubMed search for all current English language published literature, where filters were placed in the presence of duplicate IVC. We suggest that patients with deep vein thrombosis should have an accurate assessment of venous anatomy before IVC filter placement. Duplication of IVC, although rare, should be considered as this has management implications.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Utility of gum-elastic bougie for tracheal intubation during chest compressions in a manikin: a randomized crossover trial.
The utility of the gum-elastic bougie (GEB) as an assistive device for tracheal intubation during chest compressions has not been sufficiently validated. This study aimed to compare the utility of the GEB during chest compressions on an adult manikin. ⋯ These findings suggest that the GEB facilitates tracheal intubation during chest compressions performed by novice physicians in adult simulations.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The effects of proximal and distal routes of intraosseous epinephrine administration on short-term resuscitative outcome measures in an adult swine model of ventricular fibrillation: a randomized controlled study.
It is unknown if the anatomical distance of intraosseous (i.o.) epinephrine injection from the heart affects resuscitative outcome. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between the anatomical distance of i.o. epinephrine injection and measures of resuscitative outcome in an adult swine model of ventricular fibrillation (VF). ⋯ The anatomical distance of i.o. epinephrine injection from the heart did not affect short-term measures of resuscitative outcome in an adult swine model of VF including the occurrence of ROSC, 30 minute post-ROSC survival, and time to ROSC. Rapidly administered epinephrine, irrespective of route of administration, increased the chance ROSC and survival to 30 minutes post-ROSC would occur in this study.
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Duration of a stay in an emergency department (ED) is considered a measure of quality, but current measures average lengths of stay across all conditions. Previous research on ED length of stay has been limited to a single condition or a few hospitals. We use a census of one state's data to measure length of ED stays by patients' conditions and dispositions and explore differences between means and medians as quality metrics. ⋯ Emergency department length of stay as a measure of ED quality should take into account the considerable variation by condition and disposition of the patient. Emergency department length of stay measurement could be improved in the United States by standardizing its definition; distinguishing visits involving treatment, observation, and boarding; and incorporating more distributional information.
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Shock Index (SI) is considered to be a predictor of mortality in many medical and trauma settings. Many studies have shown its superiority to conventional vital sign measurements in mortality prediction. ⋯ In nontrauma adult patients, triage time SI, MSI, and Age SI are superior to blood pressure for mortality prediction in ESI level 2. They can be used alone or in combination with similar results, but their low sensitivity and specificity make them usable only as an adjunct for this purpose.