The American journal of emergency medicine
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Multicenter Study
FAST for blunt abdominal trauma: Correlation between positive findings and admission acid-base measurement.
This study aimed to determine any association between positive findings in ultrasonography examination and initial BD value with regard to diagnosis of intra-abdominal bleeding following blunt abdominal trauma. ⋯ This study revealed that arterial BD is an early accessible important marker to identify intra-abdominal bleeding, as well as to predict overall in-hospital mortality in patients with blunt abdominal trauma.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of the safety and efficacy between 3-factor and 4-factor prothrombin complex concentrates for the reversal of warfarin.
Prior to the Food and Drug Administration approval of 4-factor prothrombin complex concentrate (4F-PCC), only 3-factor PCC (3F-PCC) products were available in the US. There is limited data comparing the safety and efficacy of 3F-PCC versus 4F-PCC. The purpose of our study, therefore, was to compare the safety and efficacy profiles of 3F-PCC versus 4F-PCC for the emergent reversal of warfarin. ⋯ There was no significant difference in the percentage of patients who achieved an INR ≤1.5 between the 3F-PCC and 4F-PCC groups for emergent reversal of warfarin.
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Case Reports
Second date appendectomy: Operating for failure of nonoperative treatment in perforated appendicitis.
Nonoperative treatment of acute appendicitis is embraced by many surgical teams, driven by low to moderate quality randomized studies that support noninferiority of antibiotics versus appendectomy for treatment of acute uncomplicated appendicitis. Several flaws of these studies have emerged, especially in the recruitment strategy and in the diagnostic criteria that were used. The growing confidence given to antibiotics, together with the lack of reliable criteria to distinguish between uncomplicated and perforated appendicitis, exposes patients with perforated appendicitis to the likelihood to be treated with antibiotics instead of surgery. Among them, those patients who experience a temporary relief of symptoms due to antibiotics, followed by early recurrence of disease when antibiotics are discontinued, are likely to undergo appendectomy at their second date. Second date appendectomy, i.e. the removal of the appendix when acute inflammation relapses within the scar of a previously unhealed perforated appendicitis, is the unwanted child of the nonoperative treatment and a new challenge for both the surgeon and the patient. ⋯ When proposing nonoperative treatment for acute appendicitis, surgeons should be aware and inform their patients that if the appendix is perforated and an incomplete healing and early recurrence occur, a second date appendectomy could be a more challenging operation compared to a prompt appendectomy.
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Case Reports
Repeat acute abdomen and hemoperitoneum during the same pregnancy due to a ruptured ectopic treated by salpingostomy.
A leading cause of maternal mortality in the first trimester is hemorrhage due to a ruptured ectopic pregnancy. With the advent of tube salvage surgery, ectopic pregnancies can be removed while ensuring hemostasis and preserving the integrity of the fallopian tube. A major drawback of tube salvage surgery is the significant risk of persistent trophoblastic tissue being left behind. ⋯ Surgical intervention confirmed a ruptured ectopic pregnancy in the same site as previous, and salpingectomy was performed, after which the patient recovered without complications. The increased risk of persistent trophoblastic tissue associated with tube salvage surgery can lead to subsequent reoperation for tubal rupture. Patients undergoing these procedures should be closely monitored in the following weeks and undergo serial β-hCG testing in order to confirm successful removal of the ectopic.