European journal of emergency medicine : official journal of the European Society for Emergency Medicine
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XTC and other amphetamines are considered to be safe by the majority of partying young people who are unaware of (or unwilling to know about) the acute and chronic toxicity of these substances, and these drugs are widespread, illicit stimulants. In this article, we describe four cases of severe acute toxicity due to recreational use of amphetamines 3,4-methylene-dioxymethamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxyethylamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine, 4-methylthioamphetamine or p-methoxyamphetamine, with emphasis on the presenting symptoms and acute treatment in the emergency department.
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Clinical Trial
Role of diagnosis-specific information sheets in parents' understanding of emergency department discharge instructions.
To investigate the contribution of diagnosis-specific information sheets at discharge from the emergency department on parental understanding of the discharge instructions. ⋯ Although overall parental understanding of emergency department discharge instructions is good, understanding of the treatment instructions can be further improved with the use of diagnosis-specific information sheets.
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A large number of people throughout Europe are involved in accidents every year. Neurological emergencies as the underlying cause of accidents are poorly investigated. This retrospective chart review study was performed to evaluate the incidence of such events. ⋯ Neurological emergencies, particularly epilepsy, stroke and intracerebral hemorrhage are causes of accidents which have to be considered more often than expected and happen most frequently in the morning. Other demographical and medical data provide no additional information for emergency medical personnel to specifically identify such patients. Nevertheless, emergency physicians seem to be highly skilled in finding the correct diagnosis.
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Temporary henna tattoos are a popular fashion accessory in recent years. The tattoo dye consists of henna extract from the plant Lawsonia, and p-phenylenediamine to create a darker shade to the tattoo. ⋯ I present two cases of reactions to temporary tattoos in children attending the emergency department. The acute management of these cases and the possible future consequences of sensitization to p-phenylenediamine are discussed.
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Case Reports
Sudden onset of vomiting as a presentation of perimesencephalic subarachnoid haemorrhage.
Subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) makes up 1% of all attendances for acute severe headache to emergency departments, but other less common presentations may be seen. A 28-year-old man presented to the ED complaining of a 24-h history of nausea and vomiting of sudden onset, but without headache. ⋯ This appearance is seen in cases of non-aneurysmal SAH, which often occur in younger, male, normotensive patients, and give rise to few warning symptoms. A high index of suspicion should be maintained for SAH, even in the absence of headache.