The American journal of emergency medicine
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Comparative Study
Delay to initiation of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest EMS treatments.
Time to initial treatment is important in any response to out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). The purpose of this paper was to quantify the time delay for providing initial EMS treatments supplemented by comparison with those of other EMS systems conducting clinical trials. ⋯ Delay to EMS treatments are common and may affect clinical outcomes. Neither Utstein out-of-hospital guidelines [1] nor U.S. Cardiac Arrest Registry to Enhance Survival (CARES) databases require capture of these elements. EMS is often not providing treatments quickly enough to optimize clinical outcomes. Further regulatory change/research are needed to determine whether OHCA outcome can be improved by novel changes such as enhancing bystander effectiveness through drone-delivered drugs/devices & real-time dispatcher direction on their use.
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Cardiac transplant is an effective long-term management option for several severe cardiac diseases. These cardiac transplant patients may present to the emergency department with a range of issues involving the cardiac transplantation, including complications due to their transplant as well as altered presentations of disease resulting from their transplant. ⋯ An understanding of the presentations and various complications that may affect patients with cardiac transplant will assist emergency clinicians in the care of these patients.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Comparison of manual and mechanical chest compression techniques using cerebral oximetry in witnessed cardiac arrests at the emergency department: A prospective, randomized clinical study.
We aimed to compare regional cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO2) levels during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), performed either manually or using a mechanical chest compression device (MCCD), in witnessed cardiac arrest cases in the emergency department (ED), and to evaluate the effects of both the CPR methods and perfusion levels on patient survival and neurological outcomes. ⋯ A relationship between ROSC and high rSO2 levels in witnessed cardiac arrests exists. Monitoring rSO2 levels during CPR would be useful in CPR management and ROSC prediction. During CPR, MCCD or manual chest compression has no distinct effect on oxygen delivery to the brain.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Analgesic efficacy of the serratus anterior plane block in rib fractures pain: A randomized controlled trial.
Serratus anterior plane block (SAPB) was evaluated that in patients with the complaint of rib fracture pain in terms of total analgesic consumption and pain scores. ⋯ This study demonstrated that SAPB, as part of multimodal analgesia in pain management due to rib fractures, is safe and effective in reducing acute pain.
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Case Reports
Role of hydrogen peroxide injection for penetrating abdominal injury in creating CT Tractogram.
Penetrating abdominal trauma is responsible for approximately 35% of patients admitted to urban trauma centers, and up to 12% of those admitted in suburban or rural centers in the United States. Current protocol relies heavily on CT imaging as the diagnostic tool in evaluating for peritoneal violation in hemodynamically stable patients, however it is associated with false negative rates. In addition, visualization of the fascia of the rectus abdominis, the transversalis fascia, and the peritoneum cannot be reliably identified with CT. ⋯ We propose hydrogen peroxide as an alternative method to liquid contrast in reestablishing the stab wound tract. This method creates a negative contrast level to augment the ability of CT imaging to determine peritoneal penetration. Key Words: Penetrating Abdominal Injury, CT Tractography, Abdominal Trauma, Hydrogen Peroxide, Trauma Management.