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The primary objective of this study was to determine whether patients receiving mechanical ventilation who tolerate kinetic therapy have better pulmonary function than patients treated with standard turning. A secondary objective was to assess the cost-effectiveness of kinetic therapy.
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GEMINI Trial; CAMELOT Trial; INVEST Trial; The Dangers of Vitamin E; FDA Actions.
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Mortality among patients with advanced cirrhosis who required intubation and mechanical ventilation was related more to the derangement of liver function than to the severity of critical illness as assessed by APACHE II or SAPS.
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Influenza takes an enormous toll on humanity with respect to mortality, hospitalization, and medically attended illness. Despite the licensure of antiviral medications, immunization is the best control measure of influenza. Because patients eligible for influenza vaccine frequent EDs, health care providers working in this arena should offer the vaccine or appropriately recommend and refer patients following current guidelines to sites where the vaccine is obtainable.
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In recent years, the analysis of complex system errors, such as medical errors occurring in the ED, has changed from simply labeling and punishing individuals to understanding the underlying systems that contribute to medical error. In this issue of Emergency Medicine Specialty Reports, error in the ED and its contributing factors will be discussed, as well as steps to develop a culture of safety.
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This issue discusses some of the pitfalls that may arise in the care of the psychiatric patient. The lessons learned may assist EPs and nurses in reducing their malpractice risk, but more importantly, assist them in providing a safe disposition for these patients.
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This article focuses on specific populations presenting with abdominal pain to the ED and their specific or unique diagnoses. The pediatric, elderly, pregnant, and immunocompromised patients are special populations that pose a particular challenge to clinicians. These high-risk groups often present atypically, and serious conditions can be missed or misdiagnosed. This article discusses unusual diagnoses that often present with abdominal pain as one of the main symptoms.
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Although headache is a common symptom in children and adolescents, only a very small percentage of patients present to the emergency department for evaluation of this complaint. The majority of these headaches are benign and are either primary, such as migraine or tension-type headaches, or secondary to a viral etiology. Parents and children themselves are most concerned about the possibility of a brain tumor, whereas ED physicians are also on the alert for carbon monoxide toxicity, subarachnoid hemorrhage, meningitis, and increased intracranial pressure. The authors review the causes, diagnostic testing, and treatment of the common headache, as well as some unusual causes of non-traumatic headache.
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There currently exists much evidence to direct the application of Noninvasive Positive Pressure Ventilation (NPPV). NPPV for the treatment of patients with acute respiratory failure has generated several meta-analyses and systematic reviews,1-4 including a recent one by Dean R. Hess PhD, RRT.
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In patients with acute lung injury or ARDS, the addition of higher PEEP levels to the strategy of a low tidal volume does not improve clinical outcomes.
