Articles

Trauma training course: innovative teaching models and methods for training health workers in active conflict zones of Eastern Myanmar

Myanmar has struggled through decades of internal conflict, which has negatively impacted the country’s health outcomes. Recent government changes have brought hope and reduced conflict. The ethnic minority gr...

Authors: Charles H Washington, Francis J Tyler, Julia Davis, Douglas R Shapiro, Adam Richards, Matthew Richard, Thomas J Lee, Taryn L Colton, Louis Berk, Loren Rauch, Eh Kalu Shwe Oo, Richard Hahn and Lawrence M Stock

Endotracheal intubation with a video-assisted semi-rigid fiberoptic stylet by prehospital providers

Emergency medical technicians intubate patients in unfamiliar surroundings and with less than ideal positioning. This study was designed to evaluate advanced life support (ALS) emergency medical technicians' (...

Authors: Derek R Cooney, Charles Beaudette, Brian M Clemency, Christopher Tanski and Susan Wojcik

Abdominal emergencies in the geriatric patient

Abdominal pain is one of the most frequent reasons that elderly people visit the emergency department (ED). In this article, we review the deadliest causes of abdominal pain in this population, including mesen...

Authors: Ryan Spangler, Thuy Van Pham, Danya Khoujah and Joseph P Martinez

Prospective external validation of an accelerated (2-h) acute coronary syndrome rule-out process using a contemporary troponin assay

Recently there have been efforts to derive safe, efficient processes to rule out acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in emergency department (ED) chest pain patients. We aimed to prospectively validate an ACS assess...

Authors: Anne-Maree Kelly and Sharon Klim

Ring-shaped calcific constrictive pericarditis strangling the heart: a case report

Constrictive pericarditis is caused by fibrosis and calcification of the pericardium, processes that inhibit diastolic filling of the heart. For the diagnosis of constrictive pericarditis, a combined approach ...

Authors: Mu Sook Lee, Joon Hyouk Choi, Young Uck Kim and Su Wan Kim

Emergency department diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension in a patient with left atrial sarcoma

Pulmonary hypertension is a disease with many etiologies and is responsible for 200,000 admissions and 25,000 hospitalizations in the United States each year. We report the case of a previously healthy 58-year...

Authors: Maricel Dela Cruz and Jeremy Seelinger Devey

Knowledge and practices of Thai emergency physicians regarding the care of delirious elderly patients

The Society for Academic Emergency Medicine (SAEM) Geriatric Emergency Medicine Task Force recommends assessment of delirium for all elderly emergency department (ED) patients. Little is known about emergency ...

Authors: Jiraporn Sri-on, Gregory Philip Tirrell, Prasit Wuthisuthimethawee and Shan Woo Liu

Teaching and evaluating multitasking ability in emergency medicine residents - what is the best practice?

Multitasking is an essential skill to develop during Emergency Medicine (EM) residency. Residents who struggle to cope in a multitasking environment risk fatigue, stress, and burnout. Improper management of in...

Authors: Kenneth WJ Heng

Lemierre's syndrome secondary to community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection presenting with cardiac tamponade, a rare disease with a life-threatening presentation: a case report

Lemierre's syndrome is a rare condition characterized by thrombophlebitis of internal jugular vein, septicemia and septic metastatic infection of different organs. It is preceded by an oropharyngeal infection ...

Authors: Sonali Sihindi Chapa Gunatilake, Lakmini Gunarathna Yapa, Malinga Gallala, Rohitha Gamlath, Chaturaka Rodrigo and Harith Wimalaratna

Challenging script concordance test reference standard by evidence: do judgments by emergency medicine consultants agree with likelihood ratios?

We aimed to compare the clinical judgments of a reference panel of emergency medicine academic physicians against evidence-based likelihood ratios (LRs) regarding the diagnostic value of selected clinical and ...

Authors: Seyed-Foad Ahmadi, Shahin Khoshkish, Kamran Soltani-Arabshahi, Peyman Hafezi-Moghadam, Golara Zahmatkesh, Parisa Heidari, Davood Baba-Beigloo, Hamid R Baradaran and Shahram Lotfipour

Fournier's gangrene after adult male circumcision

In the advent of mass voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) for the partial prevention of HIV, previously rare adverse events associated with adult male circumcision are likely to be encountered with high...

Authors: Moses Galukande, Dennis Bbaale Sekavuga, Alex Muganzi and Alex Coutinho

The display effects of patients’ self-assessment on traumatic acute pain on the proportion and timing of analgesics administration in the emergency department

Acute pain assessment in the emergency department (ED) is important in particular during the triage process. Early pain assessment and management improve outcome. The objective of this study was to determine t...

Authors: Nik Hisamuddin NA Rahman and Cecilia Ananthanosamy

Retrospective study of elderly frequent attenders presenting with chest pain at emergency department

The aims of the study were to identify the characteristics of elderly frequent attenders to the emergency department (ED) presenting with chest pain and to assess the 1-year prognosis for developing adverse ca...

Authors: Faraz Zarisfi, Qi En Hong, Pauline See Joon Seah, Huihua Li, Susan Yap and Marcus Eng Hock Ong

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy secondary to intracranial hemorrhage

Patients suffering from aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage often present with electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities that mimic cardiac ischemia, but documented left ventricular regional wall-motion dysfunction...

Authors: Mai Shimada and Jonathan D Rose

Who gets post-concussion syndrome? An emergency department-based prospective analysis

The objective of this study was to determine who gets post-concussion syndrome (PCS) after mild traumatic brain injury or head injury.

Authors: Latha Ganti, Hussain Khalid, Pratik Shashikant Patel, Yasamin Daneshvar, Aakash N Bodhit and Keith R Peters

Perspectives of South American physicians hosting foreign rotators in emergency medicine

Emergency Medicine (EM) is increasingly becoming an international field. The number of fellowships in International EM in the USA is growing along with opportunities to complete international health electives ...

Authors: Steve O’Donnell, David H Adler, Pholaphat Charles Inboriboon, Hermenegildo Alvarado, Raul Acosta and Daniel Godoy-Monzon

Analysis of pediatric surgical trauma cases in a tertiary care center

Authors: Anjan Kumar Dhua, Lavanya Chellam and Manoj Joshi

Accidental injuries in the Pediatric Emergency Department

Authors: Sarath Parambil Sasidhara Kurup, Swathi Padankatti and Kuruvilla Thomas

Utilization of structured emergency transport system in optimizing burn center referral: a case record audit

Authors: Vanmathy Venkatapathy, Bhavani Muthukrishnan and Murugan Thalaippan

Resist antibiotic use before resistance spreads

Authors: Kiruthigha Kaliyamoorthy, Nithya Ganesan, Aditya Maddali, Tausif Thangalvadi and Parivalavan Rajavelu

Maternal mortality and its relationship to Emergency Obstetric Care (EmOC) in a tertiary care hospital in South India

Authors: Papa Dasari

Mangled Extremity Severity Score - is it really useful in assessing limb salvage following open and crush injuries in the lower extremity?

Authors: Thomas Kurien Bhanu

Absence vs. presence

Authors: Swaminathane Ramkumar

Efficacy of a novel two-day EMT refresher training program focused on essential EMS knowledge and skills

Authors: Pete Acker, Danielle Mianzo, Elizabeth Pirrotta, Matthew Strehlow and Swaminatha Mahadevan

Knowledge and attitude of medical students on brain death and organ donation

Authors: Elamurugan Tirthar Palanivelu, Sudarshanan Sundaramurthi, Shanmugam Dasarathan, Sreenath Gubbi Shamana and Vikram Kate

A two-year retrospective statistical analysis of trauma cases in our institute

Authors: Sateesh Kumar Muppasani and Vijaya Durga Reddy

Computed Tomography utilization in minor head injury

Authors: Anitha Durai and Rama Prakasha Saya

CPR training initiative: a novel training approach of nursing health care staff in CPR/ACLS, for quality improvement in CPR in India – an observational study

Authors: Saravana Kumar, Syed Ahmed Adil, Benny Remi Ponnappan and Anindya Das Gupta

Implementation of triage in a pediatric emergency department

Authors: Uma Priya Narayanan, Swathi Padankatti and Kuruvilla Thomas

Neonatal transport in resource restricted settings: a simple clinical score at arrival and its role in predicting mortality

Authors: Deepak Rathod, Bethou Adhisivam and Vishnu Bhat

Road safety practices among school-going children in Chennai

Authors: Swathi Padankatti, Uma Narayanan, Jisha Susan Babu and Kuruvilla Thomas

Importance of research for the specialty of Emergency Medicine in India

Authors: Kumar Alagappan, Anthony Brown, Latha Ganti, Michelle Biros and Swaminatha Mahadevan

Counts and cards – a novel way to detect typhoid infections in the ED

Authors: Pragya Mallick, Aditya Maddali, Tausif Thangalvadi and Parivalavan Rajavelu

Self-referred patients at the Emergency Department: patient characteristics, motivations, and willingness to make a copayment

In many countries, including the Netherlands, a substantial number of patients visit the Emergency Department (ED) without a referral by a general practitioner. The goal of this study was to determine the char...

Authors: Janneke de Valk, Elisabeth M Taal, Mariette S Nijhoff, Maren H Harms, Esther MM Lieshout, Peter Patka and Pleunie PM Rood

Self-referring patients at the emergency department: appropriateness of ED use and motives for self-referral

Nearly all Dutch citizens have a general practitioner (GP), acting as a gatekeeper to secondary care. Some patients bypass the GP and present to the emergency department (ED). To make best use of existing emer...

Authors: M Christien van der Linden, Robert Lindeboom, Naomi van der Linden, Crispijn L van den Brand, Rianne C Lam, Cees Lucas, Rob de Haan and J Carel Goslings

Does repeat Hb measurement within 2 hours after a normal initial Hb in stable trauma patients add value to trauma evaluation?

In our level I trauma center, it is considered common practice to repeat blood haemoglobin measurements in patients within 2 h after admission. However, the rationale behind this procedure is elusive and can b...

Authors: Joanne C Sierink, Pieter Joosse, Steve MM de Castro, Niels WL Schep and J Carel Goslings

Improving recognition of patients at risk in a Portuguese general hospital: results from a preliminary study on the early warning score

Early warning score (EWS) is a system that assists in the timely recognition of hospitalized patients outside critical care areas with potential or established critical illness at risk of deteriorating and who...

Authors: Nuno Correia, Rui Paulo Rodrigues, Márcia Carvalho Sá, Paula Dias, Luís Lopes and Artur Paiva

Lifesaving pericardiocentesis due to purulent pericarditis with growth of Gram-negative rods in an immune-competent Inuit male

Polymicrobial Gram-negative pericarditis is a rare entity in the immune-competent patient, and purulent pericarditis due to bacteria complicated by tamponade is a life-threatening condition with high mortality...

Authors: Carl Frederik Brandt Simonÿ, Mikkel Malham, Jacob Kanstrup, Piotr Wojtek, Folmer Lynggaard and Stig Andersen

Serum lactate as a predictor of early outcomes among trauma patients in Uganda

Trauma is the leading cause of death in the developed world. Accurate assessment of severity of injuries is critical in informing treatment choices. Current models of assessing severity of injury are not witho...

Authors: Michael Okello, Patson Makobore, Robert Wangoda, Alex Upoki and Moses Galukande

Telemedicine in pre-hospital care: a review of telemedicine applications in the pre-hospital environment

The right person in the right place and at the right time is not always possible; telemedicine offers the potential to give audio and visual access to the appropriate clinician for patients. Advances in inform...

Authors: Ahjoku Amadi-Obi, Peadar Gilligan, Niall Owens and Cathal O’Donnell

Unscheduled return visits to a Dutch inner-city emergency department

Unscheduled return visits to the emergency department (ED) may reflect shortcomings in care. This study characterized ED return visits with respect to incidence, risk factors, reasons and post-ED disposition. ...

Authors: M Christien van der Linden, Robert Lindeboom, Rob de Haan, Naomi van der Linden, Ernie RJT de Deckere, Cees Lucas, Steven J Rhemrev and J Carel Goslings

A rare case of oesophageal rupture: Boerhaave's syndrome

A 70-year-old patient was referred to our emergency department with severe retrosternal pain after forceful vomiting. Computed tomography (CT) scan revealed a left-sided oesophageal rupture with accompanying p...

Authors: Gerben van der Weg, Marald Wikkeling, Maarten van Leeuwen and Ewoud ter Avest

Associations between in-hospital bed occupancy and unplanned 72-h revisits to the emergency department: a register study

A possible downstream effect of high in-hospital bed occupancy is that patients in the emergency department (ED) who would benefit from in-hospital care are denied admission. The present study aimed at evaluat...

Authors: Mathias C Blom, Fredrik Jonsson, Mona Landin-Olsson and Kjell Ivarsson

Nursing home-acquired pneumonia: course and management in the emergency department

Pneumonia is among the foremost causes of hospitalization and mortality in patients residing in extended care facilities. Despite its prevalence, there is currently little literature focusing on the course and...

Authors: Syed Imran Ayaz, Nadia Haque, Claire Pearson, Patrick Medado, Duane Robinson, Robert Wahl, Marcus Zervos and Brian J O’Neil

The emergency to home project: impact of an emergency department care coordinator on hospital admission and emergency department utilization among seniors

Seniors comprise 14% to 21% of all emergency department (ED) visits, yet are disproportionately larger users of ED and inpatient resources. ED care coordinators (EDCCs) target seniors at risk for functional de...

Authors: Christopher Matthew Bond, Elizabeth A Freiheit, Lesley Podruzny, Alianu Akawakun Kingsly, Dongmei Wang, Jamie Davenport, Abram Gutscher, Cathy Askin, Allison Taylor, Vivian Lee, Queenie Choo and Eddy Samuel Lang

Fracture prevalence during an unusual period of snow and ice in the Netherlands

The objective of the current study was to assess the effect of an unusual 10-day snow and ice period on the prevalence of fractures in an emergency department (ED) in the Netherlands. Furthermore, patients wit...

Authors: Crispijn L van den Brand, M Christien van der Linden, Naomi van der Linden and Steven J Rhemrev

Evaluating the effect of emergency department crowding on triage destination

Emergency Department (ED) crowding has been studied for the last 20 years, yet many questions remain about its impact on patient care. In this study, we aimed to determine if ED crowding influenced patient tri...

Authors: Erin O’Connor, Mathieu Gatien, Cindy Weir and Lisa Calder

Preparing for effective communications during disasters: lessons from a World Health Organization quality improvement project

One hundred ninety-four member nations turn to the World Health Organization (WHO) for guidance and assistance during disasters. Purposes of disaster communication include preventing panic, promoting appropria...

Authors: Laura N Medford-Davis and G Bobby Kapur

Cerebrospinal fluid lactate level as a diagnostic biomarker for bacterial meningitis in children

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) lactate is a potential biomarker for bacterial meningitis in children. To this end, we performed a single-center retrospective cohort study of children from Sao Paulo, Brazil, with CS...

Authors: Eduardo Mekitarian Filho, Sérgio Massaru Horita, Alfredo Elias Gilio and Lise E Nigrovic

Patients in a private hospital in India leave the emergency department against medical advice for financial reasons

Some reports indicate financial concerns as a factor affecting ED patients leaving the acute care setting against medical advice (AMA). In India, no person is supposed to be denied urgent care because of inabi...

Authors: Sassan Naderi, John R Acerra, Kathryn Bailey, Pinaki Mukherji, Taraknath Taraphdar, Tirtha Mukherjee, Abin Pal, Mary Frances Ward, Kathryn Miele, Maxwell Mathias, Richard Tan, Myriam Kline, Kumar Alagappan and Robert Silverman