Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
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Comparative Study
A comparison of five simplified scales to the out-of-hospital Glasgow Coma Scale for the prediction of traumatic brain injury outcomes.
The 15-point Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) frequently is used in the initial evaluation of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in out-of-hospital settings. We hypothesized that the GCS might be unnecessarily complex for out-of-hospital use. ⋯ In the evaluation of injured patients, five simplified neurological scales approached the performance of the total GCS score for the prediction of four clinically relevant TBI outcomes.
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More than 10% of the population visit emergency departments (ED) every year. Many of these patients are not up-to-date on routine vaccinations that could prevent future illnesses. The ED could significantly impact these vaccination trends. ⋯ An ED-based vaccination program is both feasible and successful. Other than a shortage of vaccine, the only ED barrier to vaccination (perceived need) might be overcome with patient education.
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Comparative Study
Electrocardiogram differentiation of benign early repolarization versus acute myocardial infarction by emergency physicians and cardiologists.
ST-segment elevation (STE) related to benign early repolarization (BER), a common normal variant, can be difficult to distinguish from acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The authors compared the electrocardiogram (ECG) interpretations of these two entities by emergency physicians (EPs) and cardiologists. ⋯ Although correct interpretation was high in both groups, cardiologists, who had significantly more years of practice, had fewer misinterpretations than EPs in distinguishing BER from AMI electrocardiographically.
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Comparative Study
Are statewide trauma registries comparable? Reaching for a national trauma dataset.
Statewide trauma registries have proliferated in the last decade, suggesting that information could be aggregated to provide an accurate depiction of serious injury in the United States. ⋯ Statewide trauma registries are prevalent but vary significantly in composition and content. Standardizing inclusion criteria, variable definitions, and coding conventions would greatly enhance the usability of an aggregated, national trauma registry.
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Some practitioners and investigators have presumed relationships between pain scores and heart rate, blood pressure, or respiratory rate. Previous literature has not adequately addressed the association of pain and vital signs. ⋯ No clinically significant associations were identified between self-reported triage pain scores and heart rate, blood pressure, or respiratory rate.