European journal of emergency medicine : official journal of the European Society for Emergency Medicine
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Deterioration of renal function with respect to baseline during an acute heart failure (AHF) episode is frequent, but impact on outcomes is still a matter of debate. ⋯ WRF detected at ED arrival has prognostic value in AHF, being associated with increased risk of death and prolonged hospitalization. These associations showed different patterns of risk but, remarkably, risk started with increments as low as 0.3 mg/dl.
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Identifying patients at risk of difficult intravenous access (DIVA) and increasing the success rates of peripheral intravenous catheterization (PIVC), preferably on the first catheterization attempt, is of clinical importance. The aim of this study was to compare the use of dynamic ultrasound guidance for PIVC with the traditional technique of visualization and palpation in patients with predicted DIVA. A systematic review and meta-analysis comparing ultrasound-guided PIVC with the traditional technique was performed. ⋯ For the secondary outcomes, ultrasound guidance was associated with a higher overall success rate (OR, 3.02; 95% CI, 1.04-8.79; P = 0.04); however, this finding did not meet statistical significance in a sensitivity analysis (OR, 2.90; 95% CI, 0.71-11.93; P = 0.14). Ultrasound was not associated with a significantly different number of attempts compared with the traditional technique (difference in means, 0.14; 95% CI, -0.32 to 0.05; P = 0.15). The use of ultrasound guidance resulted in a three-fold increase in odds for the first-attempt success rate in patients with predicted DIVA compared with the traditional technique of PIVC.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Midazolam versus morphine in acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema patients with and without atrial fibrillation: findings from the MIMO trial.
The MIMO clinical trial showed that patients with acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema (ACPE) treated with midazolam had fewer serious adverse events than those treated with morphine. Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common comorbidity in heart failure and affects patient's outcome. ⋯ This post hoc analysis of the MIMO trial suggests that the reduced risk of serious adverse events in the midazolam group compared to morphine is similar in patients with and without AF.