Ken Grauer, MD
MARCH 1, 2024
I was sent the 2 ECGs shown in Figure-1 — which were recorded from an elderly man whose heart beat "has been irregular for years". No clear history for recent chest pain — but the patient "has not been well" for the previous week. Regarding the 2 ECGs in Figure-1 : ECG #1 is the initial tracing obtained at the scene by the EMS ( E mergency M edical S ystems ) team — in association with an alert but markedly hypotensive patient.
Pediatric EM Morsels
JULY 19, 2024
Previously, we covered Post-Tonsillectomy Hemorrhage and how we hope that “all bleeding eventually stops: ideally, by means that we have imposed rather than by exhaustion of the patient’s RBC resources.” Since the original morsel ( way back in 2012 ), the literature has shown that there are a few extra ingredients that we can add to our morsel recipe when we care for children with post-tonsillectomy hemorrhage.
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Sensible Medicine
SEPTEMBER 19, 2024
Dr. Marty Makary has a powerful new book, BLIND SPOTS: When medicine gets it wrong and what it means for our health , that came out on Tuesday and instantly hit #2 bestselling book on Amazon. I loved the book and highly recommend it. In this piece, he discusses one of those blind spots of the modern medical establishment—America is getting sicker right before our eyes.
Science Based Medicine
OCTOBER 2, 2024
Just recently, in casual conversation, someone commented to me that “they” already have a cure for cancer but are hiding it. This is a claim I frequently encounter. One survey, from 2005, found that 27.3% of those surveyed endorsed this belief. Another survey from 2014 found that 37% of people believe the FDA is suppressing natural cancer cures on behalf of “Big […] The post Conspiracy Thinking And Alternative Medicine first appeared on Science-Based Medicine.
EMCrit
AUGUST 26, 2024
We often joke that the right ventricle is the “forgotten ventricle,” but there is a sad truth behind this joke. Recently, there has been increased recognition of the importance of right ventricle failure and systemic congestion within some circles (e.g., nephrologists and resuscitationists). However, overall the right ventricular failure continues to be commonly overlooked.
St. Emlyn
JULY 9, 2024
St.Emlyn's - Emergency Medicine #FOAMed A podcast with Steve Smith ECG educator extraordinaire where we discuss occlusive myocardial infarction and the future of AI and ECG interpretation. The post Podcast – Occlusive Myocardial Infarction, ECGs and Artificial Intelligence with Steve Smith appeared first on St.Emlyn's.
First 10 EM
APRIL 2, 2024
Give your patients a break. Nobody is a perfect diagnostician. Not even the best trained physician can determine, with 100% accuracy, which patients have serious pathology. Even with advanced testing, we aren’t close to perfect. However, if you listen to the subtext of breakroom complaints, it seems like we expect patients to be better diagnosticians […] The post Are you a perfect diagnostician?
Emergency Care Today brings together the best content for emergency care practitioners from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
Critical Care North Hampton
JANUARY 25, 2024
Many thanks to Dr Manoj Wickramsinghe for his review of this fabulous POCUS textbook. He is a trainee in Anaesthesia and ICM, based in Leeds, and one of the CCN editorial team. About the book authors Editors; Hatem Soliman-Aboumarie, Marcelo Haertel Miglioranza, Luna Gargani, Giovanni Volpicelli. The authors and editors of this book include some.
Stop and Think
MARCH 31, 2024
My career in cardiology can be separated into two decade-long blocks. The first decade I practiced like most other cardiologists. I went with the flow, followed the guidelines. I went to few meetings, read few studies and as a result had little (mental) tension. Then I started writing about medical evidence. This required studying the evidence. Over time, I learned the skill of critical appraisal.
Dr. Smith's ECG Blog
JUNE 17, 2024
Written by Bobby Nicholson, MD 67 year old male with history of hypertension and hyperlipidemia presented to the Emergency Department via ambulance with midsternal nonradiating chest pain and dyspnea on exertion. Pain improved to 1/10 after EMS administers 324 mg aspirin and the following EKG is obtained at triage. What do you think? If this EKG were handed to you to screen from triage without any clinical information, what would you think?
Ken Grauer, MD
OCTOBER 10, 2024
I was sent the ECG shown in Figure-1 — told only that the patient was a middle-aged man with septicemia. QUESTIONS: Is this rhythm too fast to be sinus tachycardia? Are flutter waves hidden within the QRS and T waves? Are we seeing the retrograde P waves of AVNRT? Is this ATach ( A trial T achycardia )? Figure-1: The initial ECG in today's case. MY Thoughts on Today’s CASE: In my opinion — none of the above answers are optimal to describe the rhythm in Figure-1.
Pediatric EM Morsels
MARCH 29, 2024
Often our job requires us to consider the presence of needles of significant illness in the haystack of nonspecific symptoms. With the help of our favorite geneticist , Dr. Liz Baker, we will dive into the haystack headfirst and find those needles. Hopefully, without getting poked. Let’s consider Inborn Errors of Metabolism Presenting in the ED : Inborn Errors of Metabolism: Basics Common Presentations, Uncommon Kiddos For the child with lethargy, vomiting, acidosis, hypoglycemia , organom
Sensible Medicine
OCTOBER 20, 2024
In a world where doctors are increasingly treated like cogs in a machine, the question arises: Would you recommend your son or daughter pursue the field? Recently, I saw this poll: I said ‘unsure’, but that is just a fragment of what I think. Here is my answer (leave yours in the comments). My answer is: it depends on who is asking. I would strongly encourage you to pursue medicine if… Your primary goal in a career is using your talents to improve the well being of others.
Science Based Medicine
JULY 21, 2024
Actual death is worse than theoretical death. This didn't used to be controversial in medicine. The post Dr. John Ioannidis: Yet Another Doctor Who Treats Theoretical Death From The Vaccine With More Gravity Than Actual Death From COVID first appeared on Science-Based Medicine.
Emergency Medicine Cases
APRIL 2, 2024
In this part 2 of our 2-part podcast on asthma with Dr. Sameer Mal and Dr. Leeor Sommer, we dig into the recognition and management of life-threatening asthma. We answer such questions as: what are the key elements in recognition of threatening asthma? What are the most time-sensitive interventions required to break the vicious cycle of asthma? What are the best options for dosing and administering magnesium sulphate, epinephrine, fentanyl and ketamine in the management of the crashing asthmatic
St. Emlyn
SEPTEMBER 26, 2024
St.Emlyn's - Emergency Medicine #FOAMed The diagnosis of subarachnoid haemorrhage in the emergency department is a constant source of anxiety. How do we make sure we pick up everyone with a bleed, but not overinvestigate […] The post The Subarachnoid Haemorrhage in the Emergency Department (SHED) Study appeared first on St.Emlyn's.
First 10 EM
JUNE 24, 2024
A can’t intubate can’t oxygenate scenario will always be scary, but after years of mental rehearsal and some real world experience, the idea of surgical front of neck access in an adult doesn’t bother me much. (I think that is an important mental space for emergency physicians to find if you want to be able […] The post The pediatric can’t intubate can’t oxygenate scenario (Use a knife) appeared first on First10EM.
EM Ottawa
MARCH 14, 2024
Posterior circulation ischemia accounts for approximately 20-25% of all ischemic strokes and is a significant cause of patient disability. The diagnosis can be extremely challenging as findings are often not typically focal. Posterior strokes are misdiagnosed more than 3x more often than anterior circulation strokes.1 Similar to anterior circulation strokes, posterior strokes are most commonly […] The post Posterior Circulation Strokes appeared first on EMOttawa Blog.
RebelEM
FEBRUARY 1, 2024
Background : Alteplase, a class of medication that converts plasminogen to plasmin leading to fibrin degradation and subsequent clot lysis, has been the standard of care for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients that meet eligibility criteria. Tenecteplase, a modified version of alteplase, is being increasingly utilized for AIS due to its favorable pharmacological profile, ease of administration, and cost effectiveness.
EMCrit
JUNE 17, 2024
introduction Bilevel Sequence Intubation (BSI) refers to initiation of noninvasive bilevel positive pressure ventilation with a backup rate prior to intubation (either using a BiPAP machine or a full-featured mechanical ventilator). BSI is distinct from traditional rapid sequence intubation (RSI), since BSI involves the delivery of machine-initiated, pressure-controlled breaths following administration of sedation and paralytics. […] EMCrit Project by Josh Farkas.
ALiEM
JUNE 10, 2024
For years, adult literature has provided clear guidelines for cervical spine imaging through the NEXUS and Canadian C-spine Rule (CCR) tools. These have been invaluable in helping clinicians decide when to image the neck in trauma patients. Similarly, the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN) has developed robust tools for assessing blunt head trauma in children.
Ken Grauer, MD
JUNE 22, 2024
The ECG in Figure-1 — was obtained from a middle-aged woman with positional tachycardia and diaphoresis with change of position from suprine to sitting. Although CP ( C hest P ain ) was not a prominent symptom — ACS ( A cute C oronary S yndrome ) was suspected from the chest lead T wave inversion seen on this ECG. QUESTIONS: How would YOU interpret the ECG in Figure-1 ?
Dr. Smith's ECG Blog
FEBRUARY 22, 2024
Written by Pendell Meyers A woman in her 30s called EMS for acute symptoms including near-syncope, nausea, diaphoresis, and abdominal pain. EMS arrived and found her to appear altered, critically ill, and hypotensive. An ECG was performed: What do you think? Extremely wide complex monomorphic rhythm just over 100 bpm. The QRS is so wide and sinusoidal that the only real possibilities left are hyperkalemia or Na channel blockade.
Sensible Medicine
OCTOBER 15, 2024
It is my pleasure to introduce this article by Joseph Marine, MD in response to mandatory masking policies in a number of California hospitals. There is simply no randomized evidence to support these policies, and they make little sense in 2024. I worry about the mental abilities of the public health officers who instituted these policies, and that their actions will further erode trust in public health.
Science Based Medicine
AUGUST 26, 2024
This week, Stanford University announced a conference on pandemic policy that features several of the usual suspects who spread misinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Truly, Stanford has become the "respectable" academic face of efforts to undermine public health. The post Stanford University will host a conference on pandemic planning featuring the usual (COVID-19) suspects first appeared on Science-Based Medicine.
Stop and Think
AUGUST 28, 2024
One area continues to dominate my field of cardiology. It is the search for and treatment of ischemic heart disease. Coronary heart disease dominates the minds of patients and doctors alike. Find blockages so they can be fixed before a heart attack or death occurs—goes the thinking. Coronary artery scans are the newest tool. But stress labs run days and weekends.
St. Emlyn
SEPTEMBER 18, 2024
St.Emlyn's - Emergency Medicine #FOAMed Case series of dirty epi drips in Australia. A potentially useful tool in austere/remote settings, but lots of caveats and cautions before we all start doing this! Be careful, but do learn about this potential therapy. #FOAMed @stemlyns The post The Dirty Adrenaline (Epi) drip. appeared first on St.Emlyn's.
First 10 EM
APRIL 22, 2024
As mentioned in my most recent review, publication bias has been a major concern when trying to decide whether to prescribe paxlovid. Pfizer rushed to publish their positive study (EPIC-HR), but refused to release the results of a second simultaneous study (EPIC-SR) that was stopped (due to futility) at the exact same time. With the […] The post EPIC-SR: The negative paxlovid data Pfizer has been sitting on appeared first on First10EM.
EM Ottawa
MAY 23, 2024
The North American opioid crisis is rapidly expanding, resulting in unprecedented levels of harm and strain on the healthcare system. The opioid epidemic is not new to ED providers across the country, but the true extent of harm is quite shocking. In Canada, there has been 40,642 apparent opioid toxicity deaths and 39,435 opioid-related hospitalizations […] The post “Tranq Dope”: A New Menace appeared first on EMOttawa Blog.
Life in the Fast Lane
MAY 18, 2024
Kane Guthrie Cardiac Arrest – the 5 C’s Cardiac Arrest - the 5 C's with Cliff Reid. Causes Of Cardiac Arrest You NEVER Thought Of?! Meet The Hs & Ts & Cs!
RebelEM
JANUARY 18, 2024
Background: Sepsis remains one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality. It is well-established that earlier recognition and treatment can lead to better outcome for these patients . Time to antibiotic therapy (from triage, not from onset of infection) has become a quality metric to improve the time to administration of these medications. In an effort to administer antibiotics earlier, many studies have attempted to give antibiotics in the prehospital setting but the benefit of this int
Don't Forget the Bubbles
JUNE 19, 2024
Why is this study needed? Cervical spine injuries are a rare but serious finding following blunt trauma, affecting around 1-2% of presentations. In adult trauma cases, there has been significant research to help decide which patients require X-ray or CT imaging for possible cervical spine injuries, leading to the development of the National Emergency X-Ray (NEXUS) prediction rule and the Canadian C-Spine Rule (CCR).
The Skeptics' Guide to EM
JUNE 8, 2024
Reference: Kruse et al. Systematic Review, Quality Assessment, and Synthesis of Guidelines for Emergency Department Care of Transgender and Gender-diverse People Recommendations for Immediate Action to Improve Care. WJEM December 2023 Date: May 30, 2024 Guest Skeptic: Dr. Kay Dingwell is a rural emergency physician working in Prince County, PEI with a special interest in gender-affirming care and improving the care of trans and gender-diverse patients.
EMCrit
JUNE 13, 2024
the PREOXI trial validates what I have been saying for 15 years about preoxygenation for the critically ill patient EMCrit Project by Scott Weingart, MD FCCM.
Sensible Medicine
MAY 25, 2024
Imagine if your car mechanic took $10,000 a year from Michelin tires for “consulting” and then tended to recommend their tires over Pirelli — even if the latter are on sale or better quality or both. Imagine if your Governor took campaign contributions from Panera bread and then strangely exempted Panera bread from the new minimum wage law.
Science Based Medicine
SEPTEMBER 20, 2024
If Drs. Vinay Prasad and Tracy Hoeg want to prove they actually care about routine vaccines, they can do what the should have done a long time ago and openly and unequivocally denounce Mr. Kennedy and his fire hose of anti-vaxx disinformation. The post A Simple Challenge For Drs. Vinay Prasad and Tracy Hoeg: Denounce Robert Kennedy Jr. For Promoting The Movie Vaxxed 3: Authorized to Kill first appeared on Science-Based Medicine.
The Bottom Line
JULY 19, 2024
In critically ill patients undergoing tracheal intubation does pre-oxygenation with non-invasive ventilation compared with pre-oxygenation with an oxygen mask reduce the incidence of hypoxemia during intubation?
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