J Emerg Med
-
Review Case Reports
Acute Lobar Nephronia: A Case Report and Literature Review.
Patients with fever, vomiting, and abdominal pain commonly present to the emergency department, often generating a broad differential diagnosis. We describe the first reported case in the emergency medicine literature of acute lobar nephronia (ALN). ⋯ A normal urinalysis may move clinicians to dismiss a nephrogenic or urologic process. ALN is considered a midpoint in the spectrum of upper urinary tract infections between acute pyelonephritis and intrarenal abscess. Diagnosis may be difficult, and inpatient management, sometimes prolonged, is the norm.
-
Childhood trauma is an important public health problem with financial, physical health, and mental health repercussions. Emergency departments (EDs) are often the first point of contact for many young children affected by emotionally or psychologically traumatic events (e.g., neglect, separation from primary caregiver, maltreatment, witness to domestic violence within the family, natural disasters). ⋯ Preventing recurrent trauma or recognizing early trauma exposure is difficult, but essential if long-term negative consequences are to be mitigated or prevented. Within EDs, there are missed opportunities for identification and intervention for trauma-exposed children, as well as great potential for expanding primary and secondary prevention of maltreatment-associated illness, injury, and mortality.
-
Several studies have attempted to support or dispel the teaching of appendix movement away from the right lower quadrant (RLQ) during pregnancy with contradictory results. ⋯ The appendix in the gravid patient was not found in the RLR with increasing frequency as pregnancy progressed.
-
Patient satisfaction has become a quality indicator tracked closely by hospitals and emergency departments (EDs). Unfortunately, the primary factors driving patient satisfaction remain poorly studied. It has been suggested that correct physician identification impacts patient satisfaction in hospitalized patients, however, the limited studies that exist have demonstrated mixed results. ⋯ Improved patient satisfaction was found to be positively correlated with correct physician identification, shorter waiting times, and among the pediatric patient population. Further studies are needed to determine interventions that improve patients' abilities to identify their physicians and lower waiting times.