J Emerg Med
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Incidental findings are unrelated to a patient's complaint, found on diagnostic imaging, such as point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS). Incidental findings represent potential harms to patients and may lead to increased patient anxiety and health care costs related to downstream testing and surveillance. ⋯ Incidental renal cysts are common and are more likely to be found in older adults. In our study, physicians infrequently informed patients of their incidental finding.
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Multicenter Study
The Effect of Contrast Rationing on the Development of Acute Kidney Injury During the Global Contrast Shortage.
In April of 2022, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a global shortage of intravenous contrast media (ICM), which led our health care system to implement rationing measures. ⋯ The dramatic reduction in ICM use that resulted from the global shortage was not associated with a change in the incidence of AKI. This reinforces the results of previous studies which have failed to find evidence of a relationship between ICM administration and AKI.
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Hypoxic-ischemic brain injury (HIBI) is a common complication of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). ⋯ In this cohort study, GWR values measured using early HCT demonstrated variations in predicting neurologic outcomes based on HIBI severity. Furthermore, GWR in the moderate group was associated with poor neurologic outcomes.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Increasing Uptake of Lung Cancer Screening Among Emergency Department Patients: A Pilot Study.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States. Lung cancer screening (LCS) decreases lung cancer mortality. Emergency department (ED) patients are at disproportionately high risk for lung cancer. The ED, therefore, is an optimal environment for interventions to promote LCS. ⋯ This pilot study demonstrates the feasibility of ED-based interventions to increase uptake of LCS among ED patients. A scalable ED-based intervention that increases LCS uptake could reduce lung cancer mortality.
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Observational Study
Frequency of Persistent Opioid Use 6 Months After Exposure to IV Opioids in the Emergency Department: A Prospective Cohort Study.
As rates of opioid use disorder in the general population have increased, some have questioned whether IV opioids should be used routinely for treatment of acute severe pain in the emergency department (ED). ⋯ Among 506 opioid naïve ED patients administered IV opioids for acute severe pain, only one used opioids persistently during the subsequent 6 months.