Emergency medicine journal : EMJ
-
Observational Study
The presence of companions during emergency department evaluation and its impact on perceptions of clinician-patient communication.
Research in outpatient setting suggests that the presence of companions during a medical encounter can improve clinician-patient communication. It is not known if the presence of companions has a similar effect in the acutely stressful context of the ED. This study tested whether the presence of companions in the ED relate to stronger clinician-patient communication. We further explored effect modification by demographic factors (race/ethnicity, education and language) thought to compromise communication. ⋯ Neither the presence of companions nor demographic factors were related to clinician-patient communication. The interaction effect suggesting that patients completing high school or less have the most to gain from the presence of close others warrants further exploration.
-
An 11-year-old girl presented with pain and deformity in her right little finger distal interphalangeal joint (DIPJ). She was active in several sports including hurling and had a history of dyspraxia with frequent minor soft tissue injuries which had not required hospital assessment. Her mother was concerned about the possibility of a recent injury. ⋯ There was mild swelling and tenderness of the DIPJ with no bruising, erythema or warmth. An X-ray was performed (figure 1). emermed;35/11/679/F1F1F1Figure 1An teroposterior (AP) and lateral radiographs of the right little finger. QUESTION: What is the diagnosis?Salter-Harris type 1 fracture of distal phalanxDystelephalangyExtensor digiti minimi tendon injuryClinodactyly.
-
Accidental hypothermia (AH) has higher incidence and mortality in geriatric populations. Japan has a rapidly ageing population, and little is known about the epidemiology of hypothermia in this country. ⋯ Active prevention and intervention should occur for this important public health issue.
-
A short-cut review was carried out to establish whether haloperidol is effective at treating the symptoms of cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS). One study was directly relevant to the question. ⋯ The clinical bottom line was that no controlled studies exist to report on the use of haloperidol. Alternative agents, used mainly off-label, show better promise at effectively treating symptoms of CHS based on case series and reports.