Clinical medicine (London, England)
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A 19-year-old patient presented with severe chest pain, which is not typical for cardiac angina. However, his smoking history and the strong family history of ischaemic heart disease coupled with evidence of progressive T-wave changes on his electrocardiogram (ECG) caused dilemma in deciding further management. His blood tests were normal apart from hypophosphataemia, and he had two negative troponin results. ⋯ He was given analgesia for a diagnosis of musculoskeletal chest pain and the next morning his ECG, arterial blood gases and phosphate levels all normalised. He had a normal echocardiogram and was reviewed by the cardiologist who diagnosed musculoskeletal chest pain which led to distress and hyperventilation causing hypophosphataemia and transient T-wave inversion. This case is a reminder of an under-recognised physiological phenomenon involving the cardiac conduction during hyperventilation.
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Computed tomography (CT) is readily available in developed countries. As one of the side effects includes an increased risk of cancer, interventions that may encourage more judicious use of CT are important. Behavioural economics theory includes the use of nudges that aim to help more informed decisions to be made, although these have been rarely used in hospitals to date. ⋯ There was a statistically significant reduction in the number of CT requested in the intervention hospital compared to the control hospital (-4.6%, 95% confidence intervals -7.4 to -1.7, p=0.002) in the 12 months after the intervention was implemented. We conclude that a simple, non-directional nudge intervention has the capacity to modify clinician use of CT. This approach is cheap, and has potential in helping support doctors make informed decisions.
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Case Reports
Lessons of the month 3: Spontaneous resolution of frontotemporal brain sagging syndrome.
We present a case of a man with headache and progressive behavioural disturbance. His cognitive decline progressed over a few months such that he was unable to hold a conversation or carry out any daily tasks such as washing and dressing. He had some upper motor neurone signs in his limbs and features of brainstem dysfunction including dysarthria and ocular abnormalities. ⋯ We propose that resolution of spontaneous intracranial hypotension led to resolution of frontotemporal brain sagging syndrome. We believe this is the first case described where this has occurred without any intervention. It is important to recognise this condition as a potentially reversible cause of dementia.
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The use of multiple medications is common in palliative care, putting patients at risk of adverse events and a high tablet burden. Deprescribing is the process of reviewing and stopping potentially inappropriate medications in order to improve quality of life. ⋯ There is evidence for the safety of stopping certain medications, particularly those aimed at primary prevention. A systematic process of reviewing individual medications and their appropriateness is recommended.