The American journal of emergency medicine
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The chosen age cutoff for considering patients with trauma to be "elderly" has ranged from 55 to 80 years in trauma guidelines and studies. The goal of this study was to identify at what age mortality truly increases for older victims of trauma. ⋯ Patients 70 to 74 years of age have significantly greater mortality than all younger age groups when stratified by ISS. Age cutoffs based on younger ages are not associated with significant increases in mortality. An age of 70 years should be considered as an appropriate cutoff for considering a patient to be elderly in future studies of trauma and development of geriatric trauma triage criteria.
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Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Increased rate of central venous catheterization procedures in community EDs.
Central venous catheterization (CVC) is integral to the emergency department (ED) treatment of critically ill patients, such as those receiving early goal-directed therapy for severe sepsis. No previous studies have described the overall use of CVC in community EDs. The objective of this study was to estimate the overall frequency and temporal trends in CVC use in a sample of patients visiting community EDs. ⋯ The overall rate of CVC increased from 2004 to 2008. However, there was a wide variation among Eds, and the CVC rate was lower in rural compared with urban EDs. The increase in CVC use in urban EDs may reflect more intensive therapy in the management of ED patients with acute illness or injury. Future efforts are needed to optimize best practices for the use of CVC in community ED practices and to characterize factors responsible for urban rural differences in the rate of CVC procedures.
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A previous study showed that pulmonary edema patients presenting between noon and 4 pm have the highest rates of myocardial infarction and death. We hypothesized that the highest intubation rates would also occur at these times. ⋯ We found significant circadian variation in intubation rates, with a marked increase around midnight. Pathological mechanisms causing patients with congestive heart failure to require intubation may differ from those resulting in myocardial infarction or death.
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There are no clear recommendations for the diagnostic evaluation of patients who present to the emergency department (ED) with asymptomatic elevated blood pressure. In patients presenting with asymptomatic elevated blood pressure in the ED, we measured the prevalence of abnormalities on a basic metabolic profile (BMP) that led to hospital admission as well as the prevalence of diminished renal function. ⋯ In a homogenous African American population presenting to the ED with asymptomatic elevated BP, there is a relatively high prevalence of abnormalities on the BMP that led to hospital admission. We suggest routine testing of a serum creatinine should be strongly considered in a largely African American patient population with asymptomatic elevated BP in the ED.
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We present a novel case of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, associated with worsening chest pain and T-wave inversions on electrocardiogram after atropine use. Our patient was an 82-year-old woman who complained of substernal chest discomfort of 5 hours duration. Atropine 0.5 mg was administered intravenously by the emergency medical service for symptomatic bradycardia. ⋯ Our patient received only atropine and therefore illustrated its capacity to worsen signs and symptoms of Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy. Because patients with Takotsubo cardiomyopathy may present with recurrent chest pain, we would recommend caution against the use of atropine for symptomatic bradycardia in such patients in the emergency department. Transcutaneous pacemaker should be preferred.