Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
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Comparative Study
Accuracy of e-codes assigned to emergency department records.
To determine the accuracy of ICD-9-CM external-cause-of-injury codes (e-codes) assigned to the medical records of injured patients treated in an ED and released. ⋯ The accuracy of e-codes assigned to ED records was moderate in this single institution analysis. Errors were predominantly related to the specificity of the code, but some e-codes were in the wrong category. There are implications for injury surveillance and research. E-code assignment must be standardized and applied uniformly to obtain accurate codes. Automation of e-coding could improve accuracy and consistency of codes. National and international epidemiologic studies of cause of injury among ED patients will be severely hampered until e-code assignment can be better standardized.
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To quantify one aspect of emergency medicine (EM) training by determining the proportion of emergency procedures performed by emergency physicians (EPs) in EDs with EM residency programs (EMRPs). ⋯ EPs in EDs of institutions that have EMRPs perform, on average, 50% of all index procedures (95% CI 47%, 52%). This information may assist EM programs experiencing difficulty in ensuring that their residents receive an equitable share of those procedures that are critical to their training.
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Comparative Study
Evaluation of hemoperitoneum using a single- vs multiple-view ultrasonographic examination.
To compare the sensitivities, specificities, and accuracies between a single-view ultrasonography (US) technique and a multiple-view technique for identifying hemoperitoneum in multiple-trauma patients. ⋯ An initial trauma US examination using a multiple-view technique is more sensitive than that using a single-view technique for detecting hemoperitoneum in trauma patients.
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Editorial Comment
Clinical diagnosis in emergency medicine: lost art, or lost cause?