Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
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Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2019
Yield of serious axial injury from pan scans after blunt trauma in haemodynamically stable low-risk trauma patients.
Whole body computed tomography (WBCT) scanning for trauma has gained popularity but its role in low-risk patients is controversial. We aimed to determine the rate of serious axial/truncal injury and emergency intervention in conscious, stable patients undergoing WBCT for blunt trauma in two non-trauma centre EDs in the Victorian trauma system. ⋯ The rate of serious axial/truncal injury was low. The high rate of normal scans makes it likely that the risk:benefit ratio between injury identification and radiation related cancer risk is unacceptably high. This data supports a selective CT strategy in low-risk trauma patients.
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Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2019
Use of and attitudes to the role of medication for acute whiplash injury: A preliminary survey of emergency department doctors.
Describe current practice of medication prescribing for acute whiplash-associated disorders (WAD) in the ED and explore attitudes towards pregabalin prescription for WAD. ⋯ Opioids appear to be over-prescribed. Further research into pregabalin prescription in ED is warranted.
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Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2019
A BRILL idea? The benefits, risks, insights, learning and limitations of an emergency airway registry in pre-hospital and retrieval medicine.
Airway management is a cornerstone of emergency care. Development of a robust evidence base to support the practice of pre-hospital emergency anaesthesia is key to the safety and evolution of this common but high-risk procedure. This paper discusses the benefits, risks, insights, learning and limitations of the use of an airway registry in pre-hospital and retrieval medicine, for both research and quality improvement purposes.
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There is growing recognition of the vital roles that Emergency Physicians can play in public health. Accordingly, there is a need for emergency medicine trainees to have opportunities to acquire relevant public health skillsets. This article provides an example of such a possibility. ⋯ The example illustrates the feasibility and benefits of a public health rotation for interested trainees, and offers recommendations for establishing such rotations. There are challenges, including eligibility requirements and funding. However, possible approaches exist at the individual and college levels to facilitate such training opportunities so that emergency medicine trainees can acquire necessary and valuable public health skills.