Cardiac arrest remains associated with very high morbidity and mortality, and neurologically meaningful recovery (the most important goal of cardiac arrest care) is a regrettably infrequent outcome despite the best efforts of providers. Resuscitative efforts in cardiac arrest patients typically center around ACLS algorithms and attempts to find and correct reversible causes of clinical decompensation,
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Journal Review
Vasopressin, Epinephrine and Steroids (VSE) in Cardiac Arrest
Core
Spinal Epidural Hematoma
This post discusses the rare spinal epidural hematoma focusing on presentation and diagnosis.
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Journal Review
Normalization of Vital Signs Does Not Reduce the Probability of PE
In patients with symptoms of pulmonary embolism (PE), we often turn to vital signs, including heart rate, respiratory rate and pulse oximetry, as part of our initial impression of the patient. Before even considering further testing, such as d-dimer or CTPA, we look first at the vital signs to form our gestalt impression of the patient.
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Journal Review
The Impact of Rudeness of Medical Team Performance
Iatrogenesis is an adverse patient condition directly resulting from medical treatment or error, occurring in nearly 4% of hospitalizations with 50% being preventable and 14% resulting in death (Berwick 1999, Brennan 2000). What is even more concerning is that studies have suggested that this rate is higher in pediatric patients. Research has focused primarily on patient-related factors like age and weight,
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Core
ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction in LBBB
The presence of a LBBB makes the diagnosis of an acute MI challenging. We review the topic here in an effort to shed light on this area.
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Post
dasSMACC is Coming!
The program for dasSMACC has been released and the Core EM team is extremely excited. This is the 5th iteration of this amazing conference and we continue to see the program evolve. This year, the conference features a single stage with 2500 seats. While this means no concurrent tracks and fewer speakers, it also means that this will be more than just a conference but rather an incredible event featuring the best in Emergency Medicine,
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Core
Pericarditis
This post reviews the diagnosis and management of pericarditis with a focus on not missing the hidden STEMI.
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