Pediatric emergency care
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Pediatric emergency care · Aug 2017
Ultrasound-Assisted Lumbar Puncture in Pediatric Emergency Department.
Lumbar puncture (LP) is one of the essential diagnostic tools in pediatric emergency services. Recently, ultrasound-assisted LP was reported to be beneficial in the emergency service by facilitating the procedure and improving the successful procedure rates. In addition, this method may be effective in reducing patient and parent anxiety due to the LP procedure. ⋯ Ultrasound-assisted LP reduced traumatic LP and the number of puncture attempts in pediatric patients; however, the results were not statistically significant.
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Pediatric emergency care · Aug 2017
Case ReportsLeukemoid Reaction in a Pediatric Patient With Diabetic Ketoacidosis.
Herein, we report a case of a 12-year-old girl who presented with diabetic ketoacidosis and a leukemoid reaction. Although this association has been described in a few adult patients, pediatric cases have not been reported. A leukemoid reaction is commonly defined as an elevation in the white blood cell count greater than 50,000/μL in response to severe illness or stress other than hematologic malignancy; it is considered to be mediated by various hormones, cytokines, and factors that are released in response to inciting triggers, such as acidosis. As highlighted in our report, distinguishing a benign leukemoid reaction from a hematologic malignancy and even tumor lysis syndrome, particularly in a setting of diabetic ketoacidosis, is crucial to ensuring safe and efficacious therapeutic interventions.
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Pediatric emergency care · Aug 2017
Case ReportsSevere Infant Rash Resistant to Therapy Due to Zinc Deficiency: A Case Report.
Pediatric skin diseases are a common presenting complaint to emergency medicine physicians but often pose a significant diagnostic challenge. Skin eruptions that are unusually severe for the diagnosis in question, lasting beyond the typical time of resolution, or not responding to conventional therapy should raise concern of a misdiagnosis. We present the case of a severe rash not responding to conventional atopic dermatitis therapy that led to a diagnosis of transient neonatal zinc deficiency. Clinicians caring for children should be aware of zinc deficiency and its corresponding clinical presentation, because it is readily treatable and may lead to the avoidance of unnecessary treatments and prevention of serious complications.
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Pediatric emergency care · Aug 2017
Case ReportsAtaxia and Headache in a Child: A Case of Acute Cerebellar Infarction.
A 4-year-old female patient presents to the pediatric emergency department with acute onset of ataxia and occipital headache. Initial investigation, including computed tomography imaging, failed to demonstrate any focal neurologic lesion. ⋯ Further work up identified the likely causative factor to be a heterozygous mutation at the methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase gene. In this case report, we will discuss the work-up of pediatric ataxia, the evaluation and management of cerebrovascular accidents in children, and the association between stroke and mutation of the methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase gene.
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Pediatric emergency care · Aug 2017
Case ReportsSubcutaneous Granuloma Annulare: A Diagnostic Conundrum-Learning From Mistakes.
Subcutaneous granuloma annulare is an inflammatory lesion occurring in otherwise healthy children. We present 3 pediatric patients with different diagnostic-therapeutic paths depending on the ward they were referred to. The lesions regress spontaneously, and medical or surgical treatments are generally not necessary.