Resuscitation
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Review
Novel biomarkers in diagnosing cardiac ischemia in the emergency department: a systematic review.
Novel biomarkers of myocardial ischemia and inflammatory processes have the potential to improve diagnostic accuracy of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) within a shorter time interval after symptom onset. ⋯ In patients presenting to the emergency department with chest pain or symptoms suggestive of cardiac ischemia, there is inadequate evidence to suggest the routine testing of novel biomarkers in isolation. However, several novel biomarkers have the potential to improve the sensitivity of diagnosing ACS when combined with cardiac-specific troponin.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of ultrasound and X-ray in determining the position of umbilical venous catheters.
Thoraco-abdominal X-ray (TAX) is the most frequent used method to determine the route and tip position (TP) of umbilical venous catheters (UVCs). The aim of this study was to compare ability of TAX and ultrasonography (US) to determine UVC route and TP. ⋯ TAX and US are reliable in determining UVC route (central or not) but US examination is superior to TAX in determining UVC TP.
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The prognosis of immediate survivors of cardiac arrest remains poor, as the majority of these patients develops an inflammatory disorder known as the post-cardiac arrest syndrome (PCAS). Recently, the endothelial glycocalyx has been shown to be a key modulator of vascular permeability and inflammation, but its role in PCAS remains unknown. ⋯ Our data for the first time demonstrates a perturbation of the endothelial glycocalyx in immediate survivors of cardiac arrest and indicate a potential important role of this endothelial surface layer in the development of post-cardiac arrest syndrome.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of defibrillation efficacy between two pads placements in a pediatric porcine model of cardiac arrest.
The placement of defibrillation pads at ideal anatomical sites is one of the major determinants of transthoracic defibrillation success. However, the optimal pads position for ventricular defibrillation is still undetermined. In the present study, we compared the effects of two different pads positions on defibrillation success rate in a pediatric porcine model of cardiac arrest. ⋯ In this pediatric porcine model of cardiac arrest, the anterior-posterior placement of pediatric pads yielded a higher success rate by lowering defibrillation threshold compared to the anterior-lateral position.