Contributor: Nick Hatch, MD Educational Pearls: Botulism requires a prompt clinical diagnosis as lab results can take about 5 days to return Whale blubber, honey, home fermented foods, homemade wine (especially the wine made in prison), and improperly stored canned food can all contain the toxin The botulinum toxin is create by a Clostridium botulinum…
Read MoreContributor: Ricky Dhaliwal, MD Educational Pearls: Esophageal food impaction can be managed in the ED prior to calling GI for endoscopy Coca-cola, glucagon, benzodiazepines, calcium channel blockers, and dissolved nitroglycerin are all options to try For pediatric patients, weighted bougies can be used under sedation to attempt retrieval of the food bolus Always evaluate airway…
Read MoreContributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Biggest study to date examined new protocol for repeat head CT in anticoagulated elderly patients with head trauma and an initial negative head CT 0.5%-6% of patients in this category will get a delayed ICH and this can occur up to a week out from initial injury 18% of…
Read MoreContributor: Alicia Oberle, MD Educational Pearls: Nitrous oxide (N2O) can cause a vitamin B12 deficiency in patients after regular use N2O is used in procedural sedation but also as a popular recreational drug N2O binds and inactivate B12 in the body, therefore decreasing usable supply Lack of B12, which is essential for myelinating nerves, can…
Read MoreEducational Pearls: Glucagon can be used to treat hypoglycemia and esophageal foreign body, but it can also be used in beta-blocker toxicity to bypass cardiac beta-blockade The superior option for treating bradycardia due to beta-blocker toxicity is glucagon Glucagon has decreased efficacy in patients with heart failure, so increased doses up to 10 mg might…
Read MoreContributor: Jared Scott, MD Educational Pearls: A rust ring can occur after a metallic foreign body is left in the eye for a prolonged period of time Issues occur when the rust ring is left as it can epithelialize and become a permanent spot in the patient’s vision An eye burr or Alger brush can…
Read MoreContributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Pulse checks are necessary during CPR to check for return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) Previous studies have shown that assessing ROSC with palpating for pulse are not a very consistent Study compared palpating pulses at carotid/femoral artery versus a newly contrived gold standard for pulse checks The gold…
Read MoreContributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Study of nearly 400 patients evaluating giving calcium during cardiac arrest with the endpoint as return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) Compared giving 1 amp calcium chloride with each round of epinephrine for the first two rounds of epinephrine versus saline placebo ROSC occurred in 19% of patients in the…
Read MoreContributor: Peter Bakes, MD Educational Pearls: High concern causes of third trimester vaginal bleeding include placenta previa, placental abruption, or vasa previa In placenta previa, the placenta implants over the cervix and this condition Often noted during routine prenatal care on transabdominal ultrasound Patients present with painful vaginal bleeding, usually in the absence of trauma…
Read MoreContributor: Aaron Lessen, MD Educational Pearls: Study examined patient perceptions of providers wearing traditional white coats, fleece coats and soft-shell jackets Found that white coats were seen as more professional than other types of dress Also found that female physicians were viewed as less professional than their male counterparts regardless of dress Older respondents thought…
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