Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
-
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has led to devastating repercussions on health care systems worldwide. This viral infection has a broad clinical spectrum (ranging from influenza-like disease, viral pneumonia, and hypoxemia to acute respiratory distress syndrome requiring prolonged intensive care unit stays). The prognostic impact of measuring viral load on nasopharyngeal swab specimens (by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction [RT-PCR]) is yet to be elucidated. ⋯ Respiratory viral load measurement on the first nasopharyngeal swab (by RT-PCR) during initial ED management is neither a predictor of severity nor a predictor of mortality in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Host response to this viral infection along with the extent of preexisting comorbidities might be more foretelling of disease severity than the virus itself.
-
Review Meta Analysis
Comparison of the Loop Technique with Incision and Drainage for Skin and Soft Tissue Abscesses: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Cutaneous abscesses are common presentations to the emergency department. While the primary treatment for most abscesses is conventional incision and drainage (CID), this is painful and can lead to multiple return visits. The loop drainage technique (LDT) has been proposed as an alternate, less-invasive approach to abscess management. The primary outcome of this study was to compare LDT with CID for skin and soft tissue abscesses. ⋯ The LDT was associated with reduced treatment failures when compared with CID. Future studies should further assess the impact on pain, cosmetic outcomes, and health care costs.
-
While guidelines recommend outpatient management of patients with low-risk pulmonary embolism (PE), little is known about the disposition of patients with PE diagnosed in United States emergency departments (EDs). We sought to determine disposition practices and subsequent health care utilization in patients with acute PE in U.S. EDs. ⋯ Despite guidelines promoting outpatient management, few patients are currently discharged home in the United States; however, practice varies widely across hospitals. Return visit rates were high but most did not result in hospitalization.