International journal of emergency medicine
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Life-threatening acute lung injury due to combat and/or terror attacks is associated with high mortality. The successful management includes the use of "rescue" extracorporeal lung assist and early transport by aeromedical evacuation teams. ⋯ Novel techniques in extracorporeal lung assist and in ventilatory support may help save lives even in disaster medicine.
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Perforation of a Meckel diverticulum (MD) is a rare complication that can often mimic appendicitis. This case report identifies a child who presented to our Emergency Department (ED) with right lower quadrant abdominal pain, free fluid and air in the abdomen and pelvis, and inflammatory changes visualized on Ultrasonography (US) and computer tomography (CT) scan. In our patient, ruptured appendicitis was suspected, and the diagnosis of ruptured MD was ultimately made by laparoscopy. This case demonstrates that a healthy degree of suspicion for complicated MD should be present when dealing with a questionable diagnosis of appendicitis, particularly in the pediatric population.
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Disaster medicine education is an enormous challenge, but indispensable for disaster preparedness. ⋯ The curriculum offers medical disaster education in a reasonable time frame, interdisciplinary format, and multi-experiential course. It can serve as a template for basic medical student disaster education. Because of its comprehensive but flexible structure, it should also be helpful for other health-care professional student disaster education programs.
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Capnometry measures carbon dioxide in expired air and provides the clinician with a noninvasive measure of the systemic metabolism, circulation and ventilation. This study was carried out on patients with acute breathlessness to define the utility and role of capnometry in the emergency department. ⋯ This study shows that ETCO(2) can be used to predict the PaCO(2) level when the difference between the PaCO(2) and ETCO(2) is between 2 to 6 mmHg, especially in cases of pure acidosis and hypocapnia. Using ETCO(2) to predict PaCO(2) should be done with caution, especially in cases that involve pulmonary disorders and acid-base imbalance.
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Traumatic asphyxia is probably much more common than the surgical literature shows and should always be kept in mind as a possible complication of injuries of the chest and abdomen. ⋯ Treatment for traumatic asphyxia is supportive, and patient recovery is related to the generally associated injuries. Traumatic asphyxia should always be kept in mind as a possible complication of injuries of the chest and abdomen.