Emergency medicine journal : EMJ
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There appears to be a paucity of studies examining the characteristics and impact of frequent users upon emergency medical services (EMS). ⋯ It is unknown to what extent frequent callers impact upon EMS resources. Research should identify predictors and characteristics of frequent users of EMS, and a consistent definition of a frequent caller to or user of EMS would provide greater comparability. The lack of studies identified in this review suggests that further research is needed in order to inform policy and practice.
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A short-cut review was carried out to establish whether bedside ultrasound was accurate at diagnosing necrotising fasciitis in patients with limb infections. A total of 187 papers were found using the reported searches, of which one presented the best evidence to answer the clinical question. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results and study weaknesses of this paper is tabulated. It is concluded that there is limited evidence supporting the use of bedside ultrasound as an adjunct diagnostic tool in differentiating cellulitis from necrotising fasciitis in patients with a limb infection.
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Observational Study
Parental anxiety and affecting factors in acute paediatric blunt head injury.
This study is designed to investigate the factors affecting parental anxiety regarding their children with head injury in the emergency department (ED). ⋯ Radiological investigations had no significant impact on the decrease in anxiety and persuasion scores of the parents by themselves, while neurosurgical consultation had significant impact on them. Emergency physicians should tailor their strategy to institute effective communication with the parents of children to cut down unnecessary investigations in PBHI.
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Observational Study
The relationship between hyperlactatemia and microcirculation in the thenar eminence as measured using near-infrared spectroscopy in patients with sepsis.
Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS)-derived variables during a vascular occlusion test (VOT) have recently been used to evaluate peripheral circulatory insufficiency in patients with sepsis. We investigated the relationship between NIRS-derived variables and the lactate concentration during sepsis. ⋯ We revealed a significant correlation between NIRS-derived variables and the lactate concentration during sepsis.
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This study compared patient experiences of care provided by emergency care practitioners (ECPs) and usual providers in different emergency and urgent care settings. ⋯ Users of ECP services were more likely to be highly satisfied with overall care than usual provider patients in the study settings.