Emergency medicine journal : EMJ
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Review Case Reports
Compartment syndrome as a complication of a stab wound to the thigh: a case report and review of the literature.
Acute compartment syndrome of the thigh is a rare but potentially devastating condition, in which the pressure within the osseofascial compartment rises above the capillary perfusion gradient, leading to cellular anoxia, muscle ischaemia and death. Early diagnosis and treatment is essential to prevent long term disability. It is most often associated with crush injuries and femoral fracture. We present a previously unreported case of thigh compartment syndrome following a stab injury, treated by emergent fasciotomy.
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Review Case Reports
Acute myocardial infarction in pregnancy: a case report and subject review.
Myocardial infarction in pregnancy is uncommon. Use of thrombolytic treatment is relatively contraindicated. Early recognition as well as a multidisciplinary approach to the management of these cases is important, as untreated there is a high maternal and fetal mortality. The case presented here highlights the importance of early transfer to a specialist centre for percutaneous coronary intervention.
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A short cut review was carried out to establish whether epinephrine (adrenaline) is safe to use in digital nerve blocks. A total of 16 papers were found using the reported search, of which seven represented the best evidence to answer the clinical question. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results, and study weaknesses of these best papers are presented in table 2. The clinical bottom line is that epinephrine (1:200 000 to 1:100 000) is safe to use in digital blocks.
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A short cut review was carried out to establish whether warming local anaesthetic solutions reduced the pain on injection. A total of 758 papers were found using the reported search, of which 11 represented the best evidence to answer the clinical question. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results, and study weaknesses of these best papers are presented in table 4. The clinical bottom line is that warming local anaesthetics, either alone or in combination with buffering, significantly reduces pain of local infiltration.
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To compare the various paediatric weight estimation methods (Advanced Pediatric Life Support, Broselow Tape, Argall, and Best Guess) and parental estimate to measured weight. ⋯ Parental estimation of weight is more accurate than the other weight estimation methods studied. When this is not available, the Broselow tape is the most accurate alternative method.