Pediatric emergency care
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2012
Rates of positive blood, urine, and cerebrospinal fluid cultures in children younger than 60 days during the vaccination era.
Fever is a common reason children present to the emergency department. The goal of this study was to determine the rates and the etiology of bacterial infection in children younger than 2 months during the vaccination era. ⋯ Urinary tract infections due to E. coli are very common in this age group. The classic pathogens H. influenzae and S. pneumoniae were essentially nonexistent in this study possibly because of herd immunity obtained through current vaccination practices.
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2012
Case ReportsLoud clicking sounds associated with rapid soft palate muscle contractions.
An 8-year-old boy was seen by his primary care pediatrician with a chief complaint of "intermittent rapid vibrations of the epiglottis" that began several weeks prior. Intraoral examination revealed rapid, symmetrical bilateral contractions of the soft palate muscles (velum), accompanied by clicking sounds audible to physician (objective tinnitus) and patient. The patient was able to volitionally control the initiation and cessation of the palatal movements. ⋯ There are 2 distinct types, and our patient was diagnosed with the essential palatal myoclonus type. This type is characteristically associated with clicking tinnitus, heard by the affected person as well as those in close proximity. The clicking noise is not continuous, ceases during sleep, and is not lifelong.
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2012
Review Meta AnalysisIntraosseous vascular access for in-hospital emergency use: a systematic clinical review of the literature and analysis.
Intraosseous (IO) vascular access is a viable primary alternative in patients requiring emergent vascular access in the hospital emergency department (ED) (eg, resuscitation, shock/septic shock) but is underutilized. ⋯ Recommendations/guidelines from physician specialty societies involved in the ED setting are also lacking. Underutilization exists despite recommendations for IO access use from a number of important medical associations peripherally involved in the ED such as the American Academy of Pediatrics. To encourage the IO approach, IO product champions (as both supporter and user) in the ED are needed for prioritizing and assigning IO access use when warranted. In addition, specialty societies directly involved in emergent hospital care should develop clinical guidelines for IO use.
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2012
Review Case ReportsLate presentation of massive pleural effusion from intrathoracic migration of a ventriculoperitoneal shunt catheter: case report and review of the literature.
We report an unusual case of ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt intrathoracic migration, associated with massive symptomatic hydrothorax. The VP shunt was inserted 10 years before presentation, after hemorrhagic hydrocephalus caused by prenatal intraventricular hemorrhage. ⋯ We review the 10 pediatric cases of cerebrospinal fluid hydrothorax reported in the literature and discuss the mechanism of shunt tip migration. Pleural effusion secondary to VP shunt insertion is a rare and potentially life-threatening occurrence, and it should be suspected in any patient with a VP shunt and respiratory distress.
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2012
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyA comparison of amethocaine and liposomal lidocaine cream as a pain reliever before venipuncture in children: a randomized control trial.
Although the use of anesthetic creams before intravenous (IV) insertion has been shown to be both safe and effective in decreasing pain during IV cannulation, the use of any single agent based on efficacy is not yet considered the standard of care in children. We sought to compare a commonly used preparation, 4% liposomal lidocaine (Maxilene), with 4% amethocaine (Ametop), a newer agent with reportedly good efficacy and an intrinsic vasodilatory effect. ⋯ This study demonstrates that there is no difference between 4% amethocaine and 4% liposomal lidocaine in reducing pain associated with IV cannulation in children. Amethocaine confers no advantage in improving IV cannulation success rate over lidocaine. Both agents are associated with few local adverse skin reactions.