Annals of emergency medicine
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The alpha-gal syndrome is a recently described cause of anaphylaxis to red meat that has been increasing in frequency over time. It is related to Lone Star tick bites in the United States and occurs in many other parts of the world. It is especially common in the southeastern United States. ⋯ As many as 10% of patients diagnosed with idiopathic anaphylaxis have alpha-gal syndrome in some parts of the United States. The only current treatment is a meat-free diet. Clinician awareness of alpha-gal syndrome is low, and because severe recurrent life-threatening episodes can occur, it is an important condition for emergency clinicians to be aware of.
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Bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) rates remain low in the United States. Training children is a proposed method to increase this rate, but data on the compression efficacy of US elementary school-aged children are scarce. We hypothesized that fourth and fifth graders could learn how to respond to cardiac arrests and provide effective chest compressions. ⋯ Most students were able to learn hands-only CPR, apply their knowledge during a simulated cardiac arrest scenario, and deliver effective chest compressions. Students' confidence and willingness to perform CPR increased after the intervention.
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Approximately 1 in 100 postpartum individuals visit an emergency department (ED) for a psychiatric reason. Repeat visits can signify problems with the quality of care received during or after the initial visit; this study aimed to understand risk for repeat postpartum psychiatric ED visits. ⋯ Over 1 in 10 postpartum psychiatric ED visits are followed by a repeat visit within 30 days. Targeted approaches are needed across clinical populations to reduce repeat ED visits in this population with young infants.
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Button battery ingestion can cause alkaline esophageal injury. There is interest in first-aid household products to neutralize the injury. The objective was to investigate which household products are effective at reducing button battery injury. ⋯ Honey and jam were able to neutralize injury caused by a button battery resulting in a smaller area of ulceration. Jam should be further explored as a possible first-aid option as an alternative to honey in suspected button battery ingestion prior to definitive management.