The journal of trauma and acute care surgery
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J Trauma Acute Care Surg · May 2012
Comparative StudyFocused rapid echocardiographic evaluation versus vascular cather-based assessment of cardiac output and function in critically ill trauma patients.
Focused rapid echocardiographic evaluation (FREE) is a comprehensive transthoracic echocardiogram tailored for the intensive care unit. It assesses both the cardiac index (CI) and left ventricular ejection fraction (EF). FREE and vascular catheter-derived CI was compared, and the ability of CI to detect moderate to severe dysfunction (EF <40%) was determined. ⋯ III, diagnostic study.
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J Trauma Acute Care Surg · May 2012
Multicenter Study Comparative StudyQuality indicators used by trauma centers for performance measurement.
To describe the quality indicators (QIs) that trauma centers use for quality measurement and performance improvement. Measuring and reporting quality of care is a critical step to improve the quality of care. QIs compare actual trauma care against ideal criteria and identify patients in whom care may have been suboptimal and should be further reviewed. ⋯ Our study provides the first description of the QIs used by verified trauma centers in four high-income countries with similar systems of trauma care. The majority of trauma centers measure QIs designed to examine the safety, effectiveness, efficiency, and timeliness of hospital processes and outcomes. Opportunities exist to standardize existing QIs to allow broader implementation and develop new QIs to examine patient-centered care and equality of care.
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J Trauma Acute Care Surg · May 2012
Comparative StudyLong-term survival after major trauma in geriatric trauma patients: the glass is half full.
The objective is to examine the long-term survival status of geriatric trauma patients (GTPs) after major trauma. ⋯ III, prognostic/epidemiological study.
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J Trauma Acute Care Surg · May 2012
Comparative StudyPrehospital nausea and vomiting after trauma: Prevalence, risk factors, and development of a predictive scoring system.
Nausea and vomiting are common problems in trauma patients and potentially dangerous during trauma resuscitation. These symptoms are present in up to 10% of ambulance patients, but their prevalence in trauma patients is largely unknown. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of prehospital nausea and vomiting in trauma patients and evaluate antiemetic usage. ⋯ V, epidemiological study.
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J Trauma Acute Care Surg · May 2012
Comparative StudyFolded free vascularized fibular grafts for the treatment of subtrochanteric fractures complicated with segmental bone defects.
Subtrochanteric fractures of the femur complicated with segmental bone defects are uncommon injuries and challenging to manage. We evaluated the effect of reconstructing extensive bone defect in the subtrochanteric area (mean, 6.9 cm) with folded free vascularized fibular graft (FVFG). ⋯ V, therapeutic study.