European journal of emergency medicine : official journal of the European Society for Emergency Medicine
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Rigid cervical collars are known to increase intracranial pressure (ICP) in severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). Cerebral blood flow might decrease according to the Kellie Monroe doctrine. For this reason, the use of the collar in patients with severe TBI has been abandoned from several trauma protocols in the Netherlands. There is no evidence on the effect of a rigid collar on ICP in patients with mild or moderate TBI or indeed patients with no TBI. As a first step we tested the effect in healthy volunteers with normal ICPs and intact autoregulation of the brain. ⋯ We included 22 male and 23 female volunteers. In total 360 ONSD measurements were performed in these 45 volunteers. Application of a collar resulted in a significant increase in ONSD in both the left (β=0.06, 95% confidence interval: 0.05-0.07, P<0.001) and the right eye (β=0.01, 95% confidence interval: 0.00-0.02, P=0.027) CONCLUSION: Application of a rigid cervical collar significantly increases the ONSD in healthy volunteers with intact cerebral autoregulation. This suggests that ICP may increase after application of a collar. In healthy volunteers, this seems to be of minor importance. On the basis of our findings the effect of a collar on ONSD and ICP in patients with mild and moderate TBI needs to be determined.
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Several species of jellyfish native to the western Indian Ocean have entered the Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Canal. Since the late 1980s, each summer Rhopilema nomadica forms swarms as long as 100 km in the southeastern Levant and since the millennium aggregations of additional nonnative jellyfish have been sighted. The aim of this study was to evaluate children seen in the emergency department after jellyfish envenomations and to establish patterns of toxicity associated with this organism. ⋯ The prevalence of the jellyfish swarms and the severity of clinical manifestations because of their envenomations suggest that it should be considered as a health hazard in the Mediterranean Sea. We call for public health authorities in affected countries to initiate a health hazards database, familiarize medical and healthcare staff with the clinical syndromes, train medical and healthcare staff` in appropriate treatment, and initiate and continue public awareness campaigns.
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Fasting during Ramadan is important to Muslims. This study describes changes in emergency department (ED) visits and in frequencies of emergency conditions and impact on clinical outcomes during Ramadan in a tertiary care center in Beirut, Lebanon. ⋯ EDs might experience a decrease in volumes, higher length of stay, and potentially worse outcomes during Ramadan. Changes in the frequencies of ED visits related to common conditions are not expected. Prospective studies documenting fasting status would clarify further the impact of Ramadan.
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Observational Study
Utility of SOFA and Δ-SOFA scores for predicting outcome in critically ill patients from the emergency department.
The condition of critically ill patients in the emergency department (ED) varies from moment to moment. The aims of this study are to quantify sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) and changes in SOFA scores over time and determine its prognostic impact. ⋯ SOFA and changes in the SOFA score over time are potentially useful tools for risk stratification when applied to critically ill patients admitted to ICUs from the ED.