Emergency medicine Australasia : EMA
-
Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2013
Disease pattern and chronic illness in rural China: the Hong Kong Red Cross basic health clinic after 2008 Sichuan earthquake.
Medical teams might have difficulties preparing for deployment to rural towns due to a lack of prior information. The study objective was to identify the health needs and chronic disease prevalence of rural Chinese following a major earthquake. ⋯ We identified that the management of chronic diseases was an important issue, especially with the high prevalence of hypertension found in our study. Medical responders need to be aware of the potential pre-existing disease burden in the community, with the possible exacerbation in post-disaster situations. Careful planning on the use of treatment guidelines with particular focus on the local health resources available and issues with continuation of care will provide better care for the patients.
-
Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2013
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyAdministration of metoclopramide by infusion or bolus does not affect the incidence of drug-induced akathisia.
The study aims to determine if slow intravenous infusion of metoclopramide reduces the incidence of acute drug-induced akathisia (DIA) compared with intravenous bolus. ⋯ The incidence of DIA and reduction in nausea is unaffected by the rate of administration of intravenous metoclopramide 20 mg.
-
Emerg Med Australas · Jun 2013
Effects of obesity on patient experience in the emergency department.
The study aims to determine if obesity (body mass index ≥30.0 kg/m(2) ) adversely affects the patients' ED experience in terms of flow variables and rates of assistance, investigation and procedure. ⋯ In this single-centre study, obesity did not appear to adversely affect ED treatment. The observed differences in some investigation rates might relate to suspected morbidities and difficulties in physical examination.