Contributor: Chris Holmes, MD Educational Pearls: Through world history, there have been various interesting approaches to wound care Ancient Egyptians applied honey, lint, and grease which provided antimicrobial, absorptive and moisturizing properties, respectively Ancient Greeks irrigated wounds with clean water and applied wine and vinegar which may have been antimicrobial One of the first synthetic…
Read MoreContributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Through world history, there have been various interesting approaches to wound care Ancient Egyptians applied honey, lint, and grease which provided properties of being antimicrobial, absorption and moisturization, respectively Ancient Greeks irrigated wounds with clean water and applied wine and vinegar One of the first synthetic topical antimicrobials was…
Read MoreEmergency Medical Minute collaborated with CarePoint Health in early March for a night of education on Pediatric Emergencies geared towards mid-level providers at a local Denver brewery for our latest Brewcast. Pediatric patients require special considerations compared to adults when receiving medical care, and that remains true when dealing with fevers across different age ranges….
Read MoreContributor: Michael Hunt, MD Educational Pearls: PPE, or personal protective equipment, has become a major talking point since the emergence of the novel coronavirus (COVID 19). While ubiquitous now, there was not always equipment to protect health care providers or patients from infectious exposures. The invention of surgical gloves are credited to surgeon William Halsted….
Read MoreContributor: Don Stader, MD Educational Pearls: The classic migraine cocktail includes: Reglan (or other dopamine antagonist), Benadryl, Toradol, Decadron, and IV fluids. The most effective agent in the cocktail is a dopaminergic agent Routine IV fluids have not shown efficacy There is no evidence for pre-treatment of akathisia with diphenhydramine (Benadryl) Decadron reduces rebound headache …
Read MoreContributor: Sue Chilton, MD Educational Pearls: More intracardiac devices and injection drug abuse are thought to be increasing incidence of endocarditis Classic signs of endocarditis have included: Osler nodes (painful hemorrhagic lesions on hands and feet), Janeway lesions (painless hemorrhagic lesions on the hands and feet), and splinter hemorrhages in the nail beds Other classic…
Read MoreContributor: Chris Holmes, MD Educational Pearls: In ancient Egypt, pregnant women would urinate over barley and wheat seeds to help determine the sex of thier fetus, as well as if they were pregnant. Amazingly, this has 70% accuracy (!!) for determining pregnancy (not sex). Piss Prophets in the middle ages would examine urine for changes…
Read MoreAuthor: Jared Scott, MD Educational Pearls: From 1996 to 2012, the total quantity of opioids prescribed increased 647% for non-cancer pain Office based prescriptions accounted for 84% of the total opioid prescriptions, up from 64% The total share of opioids prescribed from the emergency department declined from 10% to 3.9% but Total opioids prescribed…
Read MoreAuthor: Dylan Luyten, MD Educational Pearls Johannes Hoffer coined term Nostalgia in 1688 in his medical dissertation. Nostalgia was a formal medical diagnosis, and one that dates back to 17th century when soldiers had longing for home and melancholy with a constellation of symptoms including lethargy, sadness, disturbed sleep, heart palpitations, GI complaints, and/or…
Read MoreAuthor: Chris Holmes, M.D. Educational Pearls It’s estimated that about 25 million people died during the Black Plaque. Researchers have confirmed this number by assessing how much old, broken pottery was buried in front of homes and churches from that time period. Traditional thinking has been that the Black Plague was spread primarily by flea…
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