Emergency medicine journal : EMJ
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Ingestion of a foreign body, the commonest being a coin, is a common problem in children. In most cases the coin will pass uneventfully through the gastrointestinal tract. ⋯ This case is particularly important because the presenting symptom of wheezing led to the erroneous diagnosis of asthma, which resulted in a three month delay in investigation and treatment. In addition, it raises the issue of whether to perform chest radiography on newly diagnosed asthmatic patients to rule out the presence of a foreign body and thereby prevent serious complications.
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Traumatic isolated cranial nerve palsies are uncommon and when they do occur, they are usually associated with severe head trauma. Cranial nerve palsy associated with mild head injury is rare. ⋯ The rate of recovery for complete third nerve palsy is slow and prolonged. The ptosis recovered in 10 months; the divergent squint required botulinum toxin to the lateral rectus muscle followed by surgery.
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To assess the effect of the introduction of NHS Direct on advice seeking calls to an accident and emergency (A&E) department. ⋯ The introduction of NHS Direct has allowed for a mechanism to be put in place reducing the number of calls for advice being dealt with by the A&E department clinical staff with a concomitant time saving. At the same time the number of calls for advice made by the public to the hospital has dramatically increased.
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The aim of this study was to examine the quality of handover of patients in the resuscitation room by describing the current perceptions of medical and ambulance staff. ⋯ Despite a generally positive perception of handovers there may be some room for improvement, in particular in the area of medical emergencies. Ambulance staff training should produce a structure for the handover that is recognisable to medical staff. The aim being a smooth and efficient transfer from prehospital agencies to A&E staff.