Pediatric emergency care
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2021
Case ReportsAcute Scrotal Pain and a Different Use of an Old Imaging Method.
The differential diagnosis of scrotal pain in childhood is a challenge for every primary care physician. We report the case of a 5-year-old boy presenting to the emergency department owing to acute left scrotal pain. Ultrasound screening revealed a Morgagni hydatid in the left testis, which was surgically removed. ⋯ Results of histological examination confirmed radiographic evaluation. No similar use of x-rays has been described in literature before, to the best of our knowledge. A brief discussion also follows about Morgagni hydatid in childhood.
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We report a case of geometrical skin lesions in a teenage patient. ⋯ Because of the current popularity of this practice, emergency or family physicians, pediatricians, dermatologists, and burn or orthopedic surgery units might encounter these injuries. When young patients present with geometrical burn injuries and unexplained or bizarre circumstances, self-inflicted burn "challenges" should be considered.
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Pediatric emergency care · Feb 2021
Case ReportsExtracorporeal Life Support as a Treatment of Supraventricular Tachycardia in a Newborn.
Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) is the most common symptomatic tachyarrhythmia in children and requires medical treatment. Thus far, there have been few reports of the use of extracorporeal life support (ECLS) to provide cardiac support in children with low cardiac output resulting from arrhythmia. We present a case of a newborn in whom ECLS was used to provide support for cardiogenic shock secondary to intractable SVT. ⋯ The patient then reverted to a sinus rhythm with a rate of 180 beats per minute. There was considerable improvement of the heart function within 2 days of starting ECLS; the patient was weaned from ECLS support, and the blood access catheters were decannulated on day 3. After weaning from ECLS support, cardiac function returned to normal.
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Traditional sources cite seasonal patterns for common infectious diseases, often based on microbiologic data, but little is known about cyclical trends in clinically diagnosed infectious conditions in the emergency department (ED). We leveraged the publicly available Nationwide Emergency Department Sample database to measure the seasonality of the most common pediatric infectious diseases diagnosed in US EDs. ⋯ Many of the most common pediatric infectious diseases diagnosed in US EDs exhibited seasonal patterns. Large administrative databases can be used to track seasonal disease patterns, with the advantage that they reflect clinician diagnosis beyond microbiologic confirmation. This methodology could aid in resource planning, infection control, and public health educational initiatives.