The American journal of emergency medicine
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Infective endocarditis (IE) is a diagnostic challenge. We aimed to systemically summarize the current evidence on the diagnostic value of procalcitonin (PCT) in identifying IE. ⋯ Current evidence does not support the routine use of serum PCT or CRP to rule in or rule out IE in patients suspected to have IE.
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Review Case Reports
Spontaneous dissection of the celiac artery: a case report and literature review.
Epigastralgia is a common chief compliant in the emergency department. Most of them are not fetal events, but some are life threatening such as aortic dissection or abdominal aneurysm rupture. ⋯ We present a case of a 48-year-old man who presented to our emergency department with the chief concern of epigastric pain and diagnosed as having isolated spontaneous celiac artery dissection involving the hepatic artery, gastroduodenal artery, and splenic artery. Most cases required surgical intervention in previous reports; there are some, as in this case, managed well nonoperatively.
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In the United States, institutional review boards (IRBs) oversee the scientific, ethical, and regulatory aspects of research conducted on human subjects. Institutional variations in the interpretation and application of federal and local regulations concerning genetic testing can have significant impact on the implementation of such studies. ⋯ Institutional interpretation of regulations regarding our ED-based genetic study was highly variable. Although the majority of our results are consistent with other similar published studies, the mean time interval for approval for this genetic study is far greater than other reported studies.
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This study aimed to clarify the efficacy of 2 therapies for patients with severe acute organophosphorus pesticide poisoning, including atropine adverse effects, the length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay, complications, and mortality. ⋯ In patients with severe poisoning, group A used less atropine, had fewer atropine adverse effects, and had a shorter ICU stay. We suggest that therapy should be started as early as possible using a sufficient amount of pralidoxime chloride started intramuscularly in combination with atropine and that the drugs should not be prematurely discontinued.