CJEM
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Teaching point-of-care ultrasonography (PoCUS) to medical students is resource intensive. Peer-assisted learning, where the teacher can be a medical student, may be a feasible alternative to expert-led learning. The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to compare the PoCUS performance assessments of medical students receiving peer-assisted vs expert-led learning. ⋯ This meta-analysis found that peer-assisted learning was a reasonable alternative to expert-led learning for teaching PoCUS skills to medical students.
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Older adults visit emergency departments (EDs) at higher rates than their younger counterparts. However, less is known about the rate at which older adults living with dementia visit and revisit EDs. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to quantify the revisit rate to the ED among older adults living with a dementia diagnosis. ⋯ Existing literature on ED revisits among older adults living with dementia highlights the medical complexities and challenges surrounding discharge and follow-up care that may cause these patients to seek ED care at an increased rate. ED personnel may play an important role in connecting patients and caregivers to more appropriate medical and social resources in order to deliver an efficient and more rounded approach to care.
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Meta Analysis
Inhaled nitrous oxide for painful procedures in children and youth: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
The objective of this study was to synthesize indication-based evidence for N2O for distress and pain in children. ⋯ There is sufficient evidence to recommend N2O plus topical anesthetic for IV insertion and laceration repair. Adverse effects are greater when combined with other sedating agents.
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The most widely used prehospital strategy for the management of hemorrhagic shock or trauma accompanied by hypotension is fluid resuscitation. Though current guidelines suggest early and aggressive fluid resuscitation, contemporary literature suggests a more restrictive approach. Our objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of low/ no IV fluids in comparison to standard resuscitation in reducing mortality for trauma patients in the prehospital setting. ⋯ Weak, primarily observational evidence suggests that standard fluid resuscitation has no significant mortality benefit over restricting/withholding IV fluids in severe/hypotensive trauma. This review adds evidence to questioning the requirement for IV fluids in trauma given the lack of mortality benefit, in addition to demonstrating the need for more randomized studies in this area.
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Anterior shoulder dislocations are commonly treated in the emergency department (ED). Analgesia for reduction is provided by intra-articular lidocaine (IAL) injection or intravenous sedation (IV sedation). The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to compare IAL versus IV sedation for closed reduction of acute anterior shoulder dislocation in the ED. ⋯ Intra-articular lidocaine may have similar effectiveness as IV sedation in the successful reduction of anterior shoulder dislocations in the ED with fewer adverse events, shorter ED length of stay, and no difference in pain scores or ease of reduction. Intra-articular lidocaine may be an effective alternative to IV sedation for reducing anterior shoulder dislocations, particularly when IV sedation is contraindicated or not feasible.