The American journal of emergency medicine
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Letter Case Reports
Late administration of pralidoxime in organophosphate (fenitrothion) poisoning.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Does morphine change the physical examination in patients with acute appendicitis?
The objective of this study was to determine if judicious dosing of morphine sulfate can provide pain relief without changing important physical examination findings in patients with acute appendicitis. We conducted a prospective, randomized, double-blind crossover design. Patients scheduled for appendectomy were randomized to two groups. ⋯ Three patients in both groups were judged to have a change in their examination after medication. The median change in VAS was 20 mm after morphine and 0 mm after placebo (P =.01). In this pilot study, patients with clinical signs of appendicitis were treated with morphine and had significant improvement of their pain without changes in their physical examination.
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The objective of the study was to assess patient expectations for pain relief in the ED. A convenience sample of 522 patients with pain and 144 patients without pain were enrolled in a prospective observational study at a university ED. Patients reported a mean expectation for pain relief of 72 % (95% CI 70-74). ⋯ There were no differences in patient expectations for pain relief based on age or gender. Patients expect a large percentage of their pain to be relieved in the ED, and many expect complete analgesia. Patient expectations for pain relief do not vary based on age, gender or pain intensity.
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The purpose of this study was to determine whether blood counts discriminate between sickle cell pain episodes that lead to successful discharge from the emergency department (ED) and those that result in complications. This retrospective review compared the hemoglobin, reticulocyte count, and white blood cell count with differential during complicated and uncomplicated ED visits. Complicated visits were pain episodes followed by admission, by readmission within 48 hours, by acute chest syndrome, by an aplastic crisis, or by the administration of blood or antibiotics. ⋯ Children successfully discharged were younger than those experiencing a complicated visit (8.9 v 11.2, P = 0.04). At a difference of 0.4 g/dL, the change in hemoglobin from baseline among children with complicated versus uncomplicated pain crises was not clinically useful. Routinely performed blood counts do not reliably identify the course of sickle cell pain crises.